


First Comes Marriage, Then Comes...

by IsahBellah



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Arranged Marriage, Bonding, Dom/sub Undertones, Domestication, Forced Bonding, Hate Sex, Humor, M/M, Mildly Dubious Consent, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Snark, Switching, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-12-07
Updated: 2014-05-19
Packaged: 2017-11-20 13:27:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 34,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/585851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IsahBellah/pseuds/IsahBellah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Right, so let me get this straight..." Tony crossed his arms. "Your father," He started, mildly pointing at Thor, "wants one of us," his finger motioning to everyone in the room, "to marry <em>your </em><em><strong>crazy</strong></em><em> brother</em>" he did the universal '<em>that guy is insane</em>' gesture with his finger, "so he can get his redemption?!"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Chosen One

**Author's Note:**

> This is my own take on [Runic's prompt](http://aonorunic.tumblr.com/post/36437954039/frostiron-rant). Although I have plenty of the plot planned, I still don't know how most of the fic will go (just like ANY fic I decide to write) okjiuhygtf  
> Also: The rating **will** go up. Wait for it~~

How... infuriating.

Yes, Loki  _had_ surrendered to the so-called Avengers earlier that day. But that didn't mean he would  _accept_  whatever they had in store for him as punishment. He was being held in court, with Thor at his side and what felt like the entire Asgardian population at his back.

The All-Father surveyed him silently from the throne before him, expression stern but otherwise carefully devoid of emotion.

It was clear from the angry whispers behind him and the look on his once-father's face that Loki wasn't welcome in Asgard anymore. He knew he no longer had a home or a family; he could not even call himself  _Odinson_. As if he'd ever want to. He was just Loki now. Being tried for something he'd done, but not because he had  _wanted_  to do it. It was a complicated issue.

None of that mattered now. Odin had made up his mind, and Loki had no say in it. He just had to  _suffer_  the consequences.

* * *

The next day, The Avengers were all sitting around the large table in the conference room, with Thor and Director Fury standing somewhat uncomfortably at the front of the room. Thor had just come back with news from Asgard, news that Fury already knew and had the  _tolerance_  and  _consideration_   **not**  to share.

Which was why Thor was the one to break it to the team.

"My friends, it seems I'll have to ask all of you a favour..." Thor started, looking at all of them before continuing again, "My father has tried Loki for his deeds. Loki will be permitted to keep his powers,  _if_  one of you could... keep an eye on him."

Clint was the first to scoff, the others (sans Tony, because Tony Stark is the opposite of patient) waiting patiently for Thor to elaborate on his request.

"The All-Father has decided that my... brother, needs someone to take responsibility for him. To care for him, and show him the wrong of his deeds."

Yeah, they still had no clue of what he was talking about. But Bruce started to sweat slightly from the conversation, Clint tensed up at each word, and Tony was playing on his phone (if it was really important Bruce would tell him what he was missing).

Only Steve and Natasha were still wearing their serious faces while listening to him.

"Which is why... he wants one of you to marry Loki."

Tony only heard the word _marry_ , but that was more than enough to catch his attention, given the context.

"Director, what the  **fuck**  is he talking about?!" Barton couldn't keep it to himself anymore and in a blink he was standing, fists clenched as he tried to keep his composure.

"Calm down, Barton. I don't like this idea any more than you." Fury said, almost as if he were trying to be soothing Clint, "But what the All-Father says is law. And this is his son too, regardless of how recently said son tried to level New York. So there's not much we can do about it. You're grown superheroes. I trust you will find a way out of this." Fury said with a rather malicious smirk before leaving the room.

"Now, Thor, you can't be serious..." Steve said cautiously, rising from his seat and walking slowly to the thunder god, "We can't let that happen to Natasha. It wouldn't be fair to a lady like her."

Tony laughed at that, sliding his phone into his pocket as he moved closer to the blonde, "Rogers, I don't think you understand what Point Break is telling us. He said  _'one of you'_ , not 'Natasha'."

Huh. Apparently a part of Tony's brain was paying attention, after all.

"Plus, I can take care of myself, Captain." Natasha said, giving Steve two gentle pats on the cheek.

"But... you're the only woman in our group, Ms. Romanoff." Steve replied, confused.

"Uhm... Mr Rogers, if I may?" Bruce removed his glasses and began to clean them on the hem of his shirt, a gesture that Tony had come to recognize as Bruce's strategy for buying himself time to think. As pissed off as Clint was, Bruce was even more upset. He was visibly trying to calm himself down before he opened his mouth to speak.

"I'm not sure what Asgard thinks of same-sex marriage, but uhm... let's just say that  _nowadays_ , here, the idea's been discussed in a number of countries. And while it's not exactly legal in New York, there are other states in which it is." Bruce shrugged, a shy smile starting to work its way onto his face.

"Right, so let me get this straight..." Tony crossed his arms. "Your father," He started, mildly pointing at Thor, "wants one of us," his finger motioning to everyone in the room, "to marry  _your_ _ **crazy**_ _brother_ " he did the universal ' _that guy is insane_ ' gesture with his finger, "so he can get his redemption?!"

"My brother is not 'crazy', Tony Stark." The god countered, looking a bit offended, "And it's not quite that simple. Once one of you marries Loki, the All-Father will give you full control over him-"

"What do you mean full control?" Clint asked, suddenly more interested in the whole deal. Natasha rolled her eyes at that.

"Calm down, Merida, let Pikachu talk." Tony turned his attention back to Thor, "So, why, exactly, do we have to  _marry_  him for that?"

The thunder god shook his head, "I do not know for sure. My father said he would explain the details to the... other fiancé."

Bruce sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "So what do we do now? I'm sure  _none_ of us are going to willingly marry Loki, right?"

It was true, though. None of them were about to raise their hand and say ' _Oh hey, you know what, I actually want to marry the psychopath!_ ' or even ' _Fine, I'll take one for the team_ '. This called for extreme measures. Decision-making like adults – like  _superheroes_.

So, naturally, Tony figured he'd let fate decide (Not that he believed in that shit anyway, but at least if they did it with a game, The Chosen One wouldn't whine so much about it, right?).

He quickly moved to the table, snatched a piece of paper, and cut off 3 long strips and one short one

"Alright, to make it fair, let's draw straws... without the straws, because we don't have time to go around SHIELD looking for straws and hell, I don't even think we'd find any here, unless Ms. Romanoff over here has straws hidden under her catsuit...  _Unlikely_."

He cleared his throat.

"Anyway, you guys know the rules, I guess. Each one of us chooses one of these..." he waved the paper slips around in the air, gesturing, "And whoever gets the smallest one, loses."

Clint was the first to notice, "Stark, you only have _four_ of those. Did you forget how to count?"

Tony raised an eyebrow and patted Clint on the back reassuringly, "Oh no buddy, I'm just taking you out of the game, that's all."

"Wait, WHAT?!"

"Sorry, dude. Thor said whoever marries Loki gets 'control' over him. I don't think I could leave you alone with him, not with that much power. And despite what might be said to the contrary, I'm not THAT much of a voyeur."

"I'm gonna have to agree with Stark, Agent Barton." Steve stepped in after rolling his eyes at Tony, "After what he did to you, perhaps it'd be better for everyone if you weren't an option?"

"What? That's bullsh-"

"What about the other missing paper, Stark? There are six of us." Natasha pointed out.

"That's Thor." Tony gestured to the big guy, now sitting and waiting patiently for their decision. "Sorry man, but you're his  _brother_. Adopted or not, that's kind of..." He decided not to finish the sentence.

But the god simply smiled and shook his head once more, "It's alright, Man Of Iron. I said it had to be one of  _you_ , not one of  _us_." He winked.

Hah. Funny guy.

"That leaves... me, Tony, Natasha and Steve." Bruce said finally, moving closer to Tony's handful of 'straws'. "I... just don't think I'm a good choice, either, Tony."

Tony gave Bruce's shoulder a reassuring squeeze, "What do you mean, man? I don't think-"

"Loki... could... _irritate_  the other guy easily." Bruce interrupted with an apologetic smile. "I don't think it'd be a good idea, Tony." He stepped back to to sit with Thor and Clint.

Tony sighs, "Very well, then. Natasha, Rogers and I-"

"Tony..." Steve started too, and seriously, Tony knew nobody wanted to marry the bastard, but they'd find a way out of this mess so the arrangement wasn't permanent. They just needed to know what the All-Father had in mind with this 'wedding'. Then they'd... do something.

"Yeah, Rogers, what is it?" Tony answered with a sigh, fighting his impulse to facepalm.

Steve ran his fingers through his hair nervously, looking everywhere but his teammates' eyes. "Uhm... look... I'm not really...  _comfortable_  with the idea of marrying a guy."

As much as Steve's general righteousness, cheeriness, so-called 'selflessness' and all his other -nesses drove Tony crazy, he was at least  _trying_  to be understanding. The guy was born in the forties, and Tony knew 'how it was'.

Maybe he was leering at the guy, because the second Rogers looked at him he almost choked, his hands coming up as if to defend himself. "I-I'm not homophobic, Tony! Jeez! I just... I don't... I'm not..." He struggled with how to explain himself without offending someone – likely Tony.

Natasha laid a hand on his shoulder, trying her best to be comforting "Captain, it's alright. There probably won't even need to be any marital... bonding." She put it simply, shrugging. "Isn't that right, Thor?"

Thor pursed his lips, "In all fairness, Lady Romanoff, in order for the wedding to be valid-"

"Yeah, no." Steve cut him abruptly, quickly sitting at the table with the other Avengers. "It's up to you and Ms. Romanoff, Stark."

With another sigh, Tony threw away another paper. Natasha simply smirked at him, amused with his discomfort "So... you and me, Mr. Stark."

"I hope you know I'm not losing this,  _Ms. Romanoff_ " Tony replied dryly.

Behind them, cheers could be heard from Barton and Banner.

"Woo! You got this, 'Tasha!" Clint shouted, pumping his fist.

"I believe in you, Tony!" Bruce said firmly, nodding.

Whether they were rooting for them to  _win_  or to  _lose_ , Tony wasn't sure. Hell, he didn't even know what success or failure even  _looked like_  in this case.

He shuffled the two remaining papers, careful not to look at which one was the longest. He didn't want to be chosen, but the Black Widow's skills were sharp. She'd know if Tony even  _thought_  about cheating.

She never stopped smirking.

"Ready?" She asked, placing her finger on one of the slips, her eyes never leaving Tony's.

He scoffed, trying his damnedest to match her devil-may-care attitude about the whole thing. "Ready."

When they both looked down at the slips of paper in their hands, Tony couldn't help but bitch about it.

"No fair, Widow, you must've switched our papers!"

Her deadly stare made him freeze. "Are you implying I  _cheated_ , Stark?"

Tony looked away, ripping the short paper into tiny little pieces. "No, not at all."

The other Avengers tried to stifle their laughs (poorly).

"Well, if that's settled, I wish to have some words with Tony Stark." Thor said cheerily, getting up from his seat and clasping a heavy hand on Tony's shoulder.

"Fine, whatever you want, Goldilocks. Let's get out of here first. I don't want to be around when the news start spreading." Tony murmured irritably.

* * *

Each Avenger left the room one after the other, with Clint and Natasha being the last ones to leave.

When they were alone in the hallway, Clint turned to look at Natasha, "So, did you actually switch the papers or something? I was too distracted with Stark's distress to pay attention." He chuckled.

She grinned back. "I didn't need to. He was so nervous that he ended up showing me the longest one. I simply took it."

"That's good. You know, I don't think I'd like the idea of you marrying that weirdo, anyway." He shrugged, smiling at her.

She allowed a small smile past her lips. "As much fun it would be to watch you torture him, I wouldn't like it either."


	2. Comforting Arms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dedicate this chapter to [Emily](http://archiveofourown.org/users/StarkRevelations), who recently passed away. She was a sweetheart and one of the best writers in the frostiron community, and she will be missed :(  
> R.I.P Em.

Tony and Thor were the first to leave the room. They walked the winding maze of nondecript hallways in silence, Tony caught somewhere between shock, dread and confusion. Once outside SHIELD headquarters, he turned to Thor with a wary expression on his face. "Okay, He-Man, what is it you wanted to talk about?"

Thor blinked at him. "I'd rather speak with you in private, Man of Iron."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "We  _are_ alone, you know."

Without explanation, the thunder god wrapped a large hand around Tony's wrist, swinging Mjölnir in the other hand to get momentum for the flight.

In a blink of an eye, they were in the air – even faster than Tony was used to in the suit – and soon enough reached the landing platform at the top of Stark (soon to be Avengers) Tower, just outside the penthouse.

Once they landed, Tony ripped his arm out of Thor's grasp and tried – without much success – to shove the god aside. "Fuck, Thor, you could've at least have warned me! I wasn't ready for this."

Flying with his suit had become like second-nature. It wasn't the flying part – sometimes Tony spent long hours over New York, just for the hell of it. Lately it had become a kind of stress relief, a less desctructive alternative to blowing things up in the workshop or drinking himself into groggy oblivion (something that Pepper and Rhodey started to appreciate).

But it was one thing to have control on your flight and another completely different thing to hold onto a brickhouse of a god, trying not to scream for your dear life because _for fuck's sake, Thor, I can fall if you don't hold me tighter!_

"My apologies, Tony. That was not the appropriate place for this discussion, so I flew us safely to your... fortress."

Tony scoffed.  _Safely_ , yeah right...

"Right, whatever, come inside." He waved a hand airily, already moved on from the jarring flight and stepping inside himself as he saw the god following him. "Can I offer you a drink? While you talk?"

Thor simply shook his head, smiling at Tony. "With all due respect, Tony, I think our conversation needs to be serious."

Eh.  _'Serious'_  and  _'Tony Stark'_ rarely worked well in the same sentence. Especially given the current circumstances.

The billionaire walked behind the bar and served himself some scotch as he waited for Thor to start talking. "So... what is it you wanna talk about?"

Thor sat down on a nearby chair, eyeing Tony thoughtfully, "What are your intentions with my brother, Anthony Stark?"

Tony choked, but quickly recovered from the shock. "Thor, you saw that we had to  _draw straws_  to choose who's the los- err... winner, right?"

The blonde nodded, "True, but I would still like to know."

If it were up to Tony there wouldn't even  _be_  a wedding.  _For fuck's sake..._

"Listen Mufasa, I get that you care a lot about your dark brother and all but-"

"Do not raise your voice with me, Anthony. I'm just trying to talk." Thor warned him.

"-but... I don't have any 'bad intentions', if that's what you're concerned about."

The Aesir nodded once more, but still didn't give up on his little interrogation. "Then do you have  _good_ intentions?"

Tony sighed, taking another sip from his scotch now that he was sure he wouldn't choke again. "I'm not going to take advantage of him like Clint would, if that's what you mean."

"Thank you, Man Of Iron."

Tony finished his drink and immediately considered pouring more into the glass because  _holy shit I'm gonna get married to Loki_.

"I'd hate to have to harm you, Man Of Iron." Thor blurted out suddenly.

Yeah, Tony  _definitely_ needed more to drink. He cleared his throat as he poured more scotch.

"I don't think that'll be necessary."

"I should certainly hope not. We want you to  _help_  my brother, Anthony, not make him worse." Thor explained, his blue eyes looking pleadingly into Tony's brown ones.

_Oh no, not the puppy eyes. Quick, Tony, change the subject. Do something!_

"So..." He prompted.

Thor looked at him with a confused expression.

"You really don't know anything else about this marriage thing?"

The thunder god sighed. "That's all the All-Father told me. Would you like to meet him and ask him yourself?"

Tony almost choked again. "W-Wait, RIGHT NOW?!"

Thor chuckled, putting Tony's – unfinished, mind you – drink down and taking his hand again. "If you are amenable. As I said at the meeting, the All-Father will speak only to the other fianceé, so we will have to go to him."

Tony pulled his hand back from Thor's as if he'd been electrocuted. "I'm not ready for that! Who even knows about this arrangement? Besides us, probably most of SHIELD and all of Asgard?"

Thor shrugged, "I wasn't aware you wanted  _all of Midgard_  to know as well."

Oh, the thunder guy could be sassy when he wanted to. Perhaps he'd picked up a thing ot two from his brother.

"Look, man, as much as I'd like this to stay hush-hush, this is  _me_  we're talking about. I can't suddenly stop my playboy ways without people wondering  _why_. I've got a bit of a reputation around here." Tony reasoned, sighing. "Besides, even if we managed to keep the secret for a while, people would still figure out that I've...  _settled down_."

"So what would you suggest?"

"First, I need to break the news... to Pepper."

* * *

"You're getting WHAT?!"

Pepper's scream could be heard from miles away. As soon as she'd arrived at the penthouse, Thor had excused himself to Tony and said that if he needed anything, he only needed to shout his name  _(that god seriously needs a phone_ , Tony noted).

Clever guy left him to drop the bomb all by himself. Damn...

"Married. I'm getting married, Pepper." Tony sighed, guiding her to the couch. She couldn't stop shaking, though if it was from shock or anger (or both), he didn't know.

" **How**  could this happen, Tony?! No,  _why_  did this happen? What about us? couldn't  _anyone_  else have taken the burden or something?! ANSWER ME!" Her screaming got louder by the second, but Tony managed to sit her down.

"I will, Pep, jeez! Let me get you something to drink first- what would you like, by the way? Something strong? Something mixed, perhaps? You know, I bought this new brand of vodka that would go really well with-"

"Water with lemon."

"... What?"

"I said I wanted  _water with lemon_ , Tony, nothing alcoholic!" Pepper yelled at him again, so Tony ran to the kitchen to grab her a glass of water.

Did he even have lemons around? Maybe at the bar.

He returned and walked behind the bar, digging through the mini fridge for a lemon, which – thank god – he had. He cut a slice and squeezed it into the glass before handing it to Pepper. "Okay, when you calm down..."

" **ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND**?!" She shrieked, before taking the glass to her lips and downing it in one go.

Tony ran his fingers through his hair, eyes to the ceiling as he searched for the right words – any words, really – to diffuse the situation. "Right, I know, you have  _every_ right to be mad at me. But hear me out, okay!"

She sighed, still holding the glass but no longer wanting to scream. "Explain." She demanded.

He sighed back, sitting down next to her on the couch and turning to look her in the eye. He told her everything: Odin's decree, the control over Loki, the weird marriage requirement, the drawing straws part, how he lost against Natasha...

Pepper wouldn't meet his gaze.

"I'm sorry, Pep, I don't know what else to say to make this better. I'm not thrilled about this news either, but..." Tony didn't know how to comfort her. To be honest, he kind of wanted comfort himself. But leaving her here so he could go out and drink until he forgot his own name wouldn't go over too well.

"You didn't answer one of my questions, though." Pepper murmured.

Tony furrowed his brows. Which one?

"I asked  _what about us_ , Tony."

Oh... that.

Tony and Pepper were still, technically, together. After arresting Loki and sending the two gods back to Asgard, every Avenger had gone their own way.

Tony invited Bruce to live with him for a while, which the scientist accepted shyly. He said he didn't want to bother Tony and Pepper, which made Tony instantly call her to assure that he was okay and alive and  _oh yeah, by the way, I made a new friend, Pep. Dr Banner is gonna live with us_.

After showing Bruce his room, Tony went up to the penthouse to find Pepper. With Loki back on Asgard and the Chitauri thing behind them, they could finally breathe a sigh of relief, but the calmness didn't last long.

Eventually, Pepper asked him why he didn't call before he went through the portal, and Tony said he tried but she didn't pick up the phone. She replied that her phone was on mute, and he recalled that no matter how busy he was during a battle he  _always_  picked up her calls. Pepper pointed out she was on a flight and was watching him on the television; he reminded her, none too gently, that  _he almost_ _ **died**_ _without even telling her goodbye_.

And then their discussion turned into an ugly fight, both of them yelling at each other the top of their lungs. It ended with a crying and extremely upset Pepper diving headfirst into her work at Stark Industries and an exhausted Tony, taking refuge in his workshop and, as usual, alcohol.

Even though their fights were becoming more frequent, they were still together. Pepper continued to worry about Tony's security, and Tony worried about the same for her.

"Pepper, I have to do this." Tony started, but when he looked up to meet her gaze, he noticed she was crying. "I'm sorry, I  _really_ am, and I wish I could fix this-"

"So you have no way out? You  **have**  to marry the bastard?" She asked between sobs. Tony wrapped his arms around her shaking shoulders and held her close.

"I don't know." He answered truthfully.

* * *

Loki thought Odin was mocking him.

He had to be. After his sentence – because it  _was_  a sentence, having to  _marry_  a puny mortal – he was sent to  _his own room_ in the palace.

Not a dungeon. Not a cell. His own room.

As soon as the door was closed behind him, his mind started turning over various plans for escape. He'd have to work around the fact that, even though he remained in possession of his powers, they were sealed off from him until the marriage was official.

Loki cursed. He tested the windows to see if they'd open, but they were shut by magic, and the door was presumably guarded by the same burly Asgardians who has escorted him from court. He was trapped like an animal. Odin had allowed him to return to what used to be his safe place, but under the circumstances it may as well have been a cell.

He wanted to scream. He wanted to destroy things. He wanted to–

"Excuse me..." Frigga's soft voice carried through the door, her knuckles knocking gently on the wood to warn of her arrival. "May I come in, Loki?"

He sighed. He was in no mood to talk, but for he, he would make an exception.

Besides, he was fairly sure that she would come in even if he'd said 'no'.

"Yes... come in... mother." Loki replied, unsure what he was to call her after all that had happened. Would he be permitted to call her mother?

She smiled at him, walking towards the bed and taking a seat. She looked up at him with a serene expression on her face. "You can still call me mother, my son." Frigga patted on a spot next to her, inviting Loki to sit.

He remained standing. "I'm not your son." The response was almost automatic, devoid of expression.

"Yes you  _are_. And you always will be, dear."

"After everything that has happened, everything that I've done, in what  _universe_  would you still want to claim me as your son?" Loki croaked, turning around to hide his features from her. She didn't need to see his face. She  _shouldn't_.

He heard the bed creak as she stood, felt her arms wrap around him, felt the small pressure of her chin resting on his back. "You are my son no matter what, Loki. Nothing that you have done, or could ever do, would change that."

"I'm a  _Jötunn_ , mother! I tried to commit genocide, I exiled Thor, I killed countless mortals-"

"I won't deny that what you have done was wrong, my love. You need to be more careful about letting your anger guide your decisions." She kissed him lightly, turning him around so she could look him in the eyes. "I'm not proud of what you did, but I forgive you."

Loki's eyes were stinging. He wanted to cry. He wanted to go back in time and forget everything and be a little boy again, so he could remain in his mother's arms and not worry about anything else in all the Nine Realms.

"Still... to wed a mortal?!" He pushed the sentiment away, working hard to hold onto anger. "What kind of senseless judgement is that?"

Frigga laughed gently, "It's for your own good, my dear. I'm sure whoever you are married to will be a good person."

"Mother, I'm going to marry a mortal  _unwillingly_." He retorts, crossing his arms. "How could this possibly be any good?"

She laughed again, pulling Loki in close for another embrace, "Oh, my sweet, everything will turn out fantastically;" Frigga kissed him on his forehead, "I just know it."

* * *

"Can we still be friends?" Pepper asked Tony, giving him one last hug.

He chuckled weakly, "Of course, Pep. Who knows, maybe I can even convince Loki into a threesome."

She laughed, hugging him tighter, "Good luck, Tony. You're gonna need it."

"Thanks." Tony sighed, pulling away from her. He cleared his throat, then. "Look... this isn't  _goodbye_."

Pepper furrowed her brows so Tony quickly elaborated. "I mean, yeah, this is  _a_ goodbye. You're going home, I'm going home, you'll probably cry some more, and I'm about to drink myself stupid."

"Tony." She warned him.

"Sorry, hyperbole, Pep. My point is: we're not over. Not yet. Thor is taking me to see Odin soon, so I can get the details of this little 'arrangement'. I've talked my way out of some crazy shit before; no reason why this should be any different, right?" He cupped her cheek gently in one hand, his thumb wiping one last tear from her eye. "I promise I'll try to find a way to fix this."

Pepper looked him in the eye, holding him to his word, then kissed him one more time on the lips and left without another word.

Once the door was closed, Tony sighed heavily, and dropped onto the couch, head cradled in his hands. Fury had said that Odin's word was 'law'. Could he really have a nice chat with the All-Father and talk his way out of this? Or would he only make himself look like an idiot?

He couldn't guarantee Pepper that he would fix everything, but damn it, he promised he would try. He couldn't even be sure that Loki agreed with this whole marriage thing. Odin  _had_  to reconsider. He had to at least acknowledge Tony.

His mind was racing frantically,  _uselessly_ , running through a thousand conversations and their hypothetical results. It was all just guesswork at this point. He wanted his mind to shut up and let him sleep.

So he decided to go back to what he was used to. Drinking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I find it kind of funny how chapter 1 is shits and giggles and all kinds of funny  
> and then chapter 2 is more like "ALRIGHT, LET'S BE SERIOUS. HERE, HAVE SOME MILD ANGST"  
> Angst is not really my "forté", per say. But, yeah, it's kind of... necessary, sometimes.


	3. Meeting the Hopefully-Not-Soon-To-Be-Father-In-Law

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be fair, this chapter was done two days after Darkness All Around You was written. Which was a long time ago. But only recently did my beta work on it (not judging you, Ally. Just sayin') and only today I managed to fully edit it (because the NEW IRON MAN 3 TRAILER YESTERDAY made me distracted) lol
> 
> Anyway, I said this long ago but I'll repeat: this particular Odin isn't a douchebag. He's more of a "trying really hard to be a good father but kind of failing" Odin. And he actually cares about Loki. Also, he's kind of a troll.
> 
> It's different from what I'm used to read/write and hopefully, it's easier to write him like that. And I hope you guys like him, too :)

Tony woke up the next day sprawled on his bar, neck stiff and back screaming from the horrible position. His head was pounding like it hadn’t for months, his open mouth drooling over everything.

_Hello, hangover, my old friend._

“Good to have you awake at last, sir.” JARVIS greeted him.

“I suppose so...” Tony sighed, coming up to a sitting position and wiping his mouth. “What’s up, JARVIS?”

“You have 62 unanswered calls, sir, and 10 voicemails.” The A.I replied dutifully.

Tony groaned, massaging his temples to try to soothe his headache. “Who are they from?”

“47 were from Ms. Potts. Would you like me to play the messages?”

He sighed, finally standing up from the bar and taking the elevator to his bedroom floor. “Nope, I’m not in the mood.”

Maybe that was a little rude, but Tony was fucking hungover and more than a little irritated with the whole marriage thing. Before talking to Pepper the night before, the seriousness of the situation hadn’t fully sunken in.

Married. He was getting _married._ To Loki. He would have to let go of Pepper, let go of his usual lifestyle, maybe even let go of Earth and/or being Iron Man.

He was going to be a prisoner. Having to live the rest of his life playing house with a murderous psychopathic alien.

He needed a plan.

By the time he got to his bedroom floor, JARVIS had finished telling him about the rest of the messages, but Tony didn’t pay attention to any of it. His headache somehow had gotten stronger.

“Sir, it seems everyone in the United States already knows about your engagement.”

“Good to know that I can always rely on gossip, JARVIS.” He went straight to the bathroom, grabbing a bottle of ibuprofen from his medicine cabinet and downing two pills without water.

That must’ve been SHIELD’s work. Seriously, it had been barely 24 hours; how could everyone already know about his marriage?

No. Not marriage. Not yet. First, he needed to talk to Odin.

He didn’t know what Thor had meant by ‘control over Loki’, or why there even need to be a marriage in the first place. Not even Thor knew much about it!

He had to have a word with his hopefully-not-soon-to-be Father-in-Law.

He figured he should at least meet the old man showered, and not dirty and smelling like alcohol. Time to turn on the charm and make a good first impression, not work the homeless look.

“JARVIS, get the shower running and tell Thor to meet me here in half an hour. I’m ready to go see Odin.”

“Might I suggest sustenance first, sir? The last time you ate was yesterday at 12 o’ clock.”

Tony was about to protest when he heard his own stomach protest for him. “Fine. I’ll order something to eat, and _then_ I’ll take a shower.”

* * *

 

Loki had slept rather uncomfortably.

It wasn’t his bedroom that made him distressed. The room was exactly the way he left it, if not even tidier. His bed and sheets were very soft and cozy, and there was a part of him that had missed it.

But his mind refused to rest, zooming through a million thoughts at once. He needed a way to show the All-Father _why_ this was a terrible idea.

Frankly, to be under an Avenger's _mercy_ like that? That was absolutely outrageous. Perhaps that was Odin's plan all along: see Loki be ridiculed by a puny mortal. But to go to such lengths as to _marry_ his once-son to the human?

Loki sighed and turned onto his back, staring at the ceiling.

The worst part was not knowing who he would be forced to... _wed_. He had no way to predict how his **fiancé** would treat him, or what to _expect_. The god had made a list in his head at night, thinking about the probabilities and possibilities of who it would be. Odin said they would choose between themselves, which only made Loki more anxious.

First, he scratched Thor off the list. Thor would always be his brother (as much as Loki denied it). They’d grown up together, played together, fought together... and the big oaf had insisted on reminding Loki about it every time they saw each other back on Midgard.

His brother wouldn't go through something as serious as a marriage to make sure he'd be okay, would he?

Absolutely not. He still loved that mortal girl, that Jane Foster. He'd have to give up on her for Loki. And Loki already knew that no matter what the occasion, he'd never come first in Thor's heart. Never again.

Huffing, he turned over again. So Thor was out of question... That still left a lot of options...

Ah, good old Captain America. Loki knew a little about him from Barton’s debrief, but it was probably enough.Rogers was a man out of time, but also an obedient soldier. If he was told to marry Loki, he'd probably do so.

Except Loki didn't know how they'd come up with a decision. If Thor wasn't the one to decide, somebody would have to freely offer themselves.

And Loki knew that the dear Captain wouldn't do that. As nice as he seemed, he was already married to his country, to his duty, and would likely treat Loki the way however he was told to do.

Barton also told him Banner - the beast - was a rather calm scientist, but he didn't feel like testing that theory. He would not soon forget how he felt like a ragdoll, swept through the air with disconcerting ease by that green creature.

He could only hope he wouldn't have to deal with that again.

Then there was Barton himself, who - if Loki was correct, and he _always_ was - would certainly want his revenge. Once he learned that he would have full power over Loki, he was sure to take advantage of it.

Right then, Loki reminded himself of the widow. Perhaps she'd be the one, given how close-minded these mortals were and how they probably wouldn't be comfortable with the idea of two men marrying each other. Yes, the woman was...

Another bad choice. She was a liar as he was, and a highly skilled one at that. She'd pretend to agree to everything, to give the appearance of taking the hawk's burden, and make Loki suffer all the same. He still remembers his words to her, how she played with him without him even realizing it.

How she was completely in love with that foolish man and would do absolutely anything to get revenge for him.

Sighing deeply, Loki closed his eyes and massaged his temples with one hand, trying to figure out who would the least awful "choice" (as if he had any).

Stark. He hadn't thought of him.

Oh, by the nine, let it be _anyone_ but Stark.

* * *

If Tony had thought that flying with Thor via Mjölnir was stressful - and mildly terrifying - that was because he’d never experienced travelling via Tesseract.

Thor explained that the Bifrost - the rainbow bridge that connected Asgard with Midgard - was broken, so they were going to use the Tesseract to get back and forth.

The god also said that travelling by the Tesseract felt like teleporting, so Tony simply shrugged and told him to do it. He knew nothing about teleportation, but figured it wouldn’t be too big of a deal, right? Quick. A blink-and-you-miss experience 

It wasn't, though.

Sure, it was fast enough, but what Thor neglected to mention was that it would make him dizzy, which was not doing any favors for his hangover.

As soon as they arrived, Tony grabbed Thor's arm for balance, as he tried to take a deep breath and not vomit all over the blonde.

"Are you alright, Man Of Iron?"

"Yeah, just peachy." Tony responded a little breathlessly, keeping his eyes shut for the moment so he could try to will away the nausea and the incessant pounding in his skull.

"Would you like me to carry you to my father's palace?" Thor offered.

And that was simply _unacceptable_. Tony Stark had _plenty_ of hangovers before (many of which were even worse than this one), and he always took care of himself just fine. He wasn't about to swoon in Thor's arms like a fucking damsel in distress.

"No thanks, Hercules, I'm _just fine_." He snapped back, rubbing at his temples and slowly opening his eyes. At first it was difficult to focus, but as his vision gradually got back to normal, he saw they were in a large golden chamber, where a tall guard – taller than even _Thor –_ stood holding his gigantic sword and looking back at them.

"We’ve been expecting you, Chosen One." The tall figure said, looking right at Tony.

 _Wait, what?_  

"Greetings, Heimdall. If you'll excuse us..." Thor said as he dismissed him, taking a hold of Tony's arm and walking out of the room, only to step out onto the aforementioned Rainbow Bridge.

Tony could see the cracks, and he could see it had been broken, but it didn't look as bad as the thunder god had suggedted.

"Hey, Thor, you told me the bridge was too damaged to travel on?" Tony asked, eyeing the cracks suspiciously.

"It used to look worse, I assure you. But it's been worked on and we're still fixing it. It's stable enough for us to walk on, but not safe enough to use as a transport." The god explained, offering an apologetic smile.

Tony shrugged and told him, "Whatever, let's go meet my dear _father-in-law_."

Loki was pacing back and forth in the throne room citizens of Asgard began to fill the hall. The air buzzed with hushed whispers and the energy in the room was high. They all were excited to see Loki's fiancé, for reasons the prince was unable to fathom.

Could he even call himself a prince anymore? He could not claim to be an Odinson any longer, he was just _Loki_ , but Odin continued to host him in the palace, and Frigga still insisted he was her _son_.

But that wouldn't matter within a few weeks, perhaps even mere days. He was about to be wed to a mortal with no title.

Assuming the All-Father didn't _listen_ to him.

"Where is he, mother?" Loki asked a little anxiously, stopping his pacing to look at Frigga. "He should have arrived by now. Soon all of Asgard is going to be here."

"I know, my love, but your father--"

"He is _not. My. Father._ " Loki snarled, before realizing who he was speaking to.

Loki could hear the whispers of the Aesir behind his back, so he stood still, trying to soften his expression. His mother didn't deserve this. But the Queen simply stood up from her throne, walked closer to him and wrapped her arms around her son.

"It's alright, Loki dear." She said as her hands rubbed his back soothingly. "I was just saying that _Odin_ has been taking care of other matters at the moment, but he'll be back shortly."

Her voice and her gentle touch seemed to calm him down. He sighed deeply, pulling away from his mother's embrace, but pausing with his hands on her shoulders. "Thank you, mother."

Odin decided to show up on that instant. "Loki..." He rested his hands on Loki’s back, expression inscrutable, though Loki could swear there was a glint of humor in his eye.

Loki took another - more discreet - breath. "Hello, _father_." He tried to keep the venom out of his voice, but maybe he failed just a bit.

"I apologize for the wait. Your groom will be here in a minute." Odin said as he seated himself, giving his wife’s hand a light squeeze.

Groom? That crossed out the woman. But there were still four other Avengers for him to worry about.

"Yes, and that's exactly what I need to talk to you about. Father, I don't think--"

Just as he was about to start a serious conversation with Odin, the gates opened and the king’s musicians started playing. Loki was forced to return to his mother's side as court etiquette dictated, crossing his arms and exhaling heavily as he closed his eyes. He had absolutely _no_ patience to deal with the situation at hand.

And the fact that Odin almost certainly would not listen to him wasn't helping either.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw Thor coming toward them down the aisle with someone by his side. It didn't take another glance to realize it was none other than Tony Stark.

 _ **Damn**_.

* * *

 

Tony had to admit, his visit to Asgard was _awesome_ so far. Everywhere he looked glittered with gold, and the architecture of the palace was _stunning_. As soon as he and Thor entered the Throne Room, all of the Asgardians bowed to them (well, probably Thor) in reverence. 

Ah, so maybe this is how Rudolf got so used to the 'kneeling' shit. Tony felt like an actual god as he walked through the hall.

That is, until he looked at his supposed _fiancé_.

Loki still wore armor - and that infamous helmet - but it looked different from the one he’d worn while on Earth. It looked lighter, with less metal and more leather. He was also wearing a long green cape, that fit well with the rest of his clothing.

Tony realized too late that he was letting his eyes linger too long, because when he looked up at Loki’s face, the god was _leering_ at him disapprovingly. It was either that or _his own_ choice of clothes.

Hmm, maybe he should've chosen something better to wear. He’d chosen one of his sharpest suits, but maybe a tux would have been more appropriate. Everyone else in the room looked extremely well groomed. Who knew what was proper protocol for mortal grooms-to-be visiting the royal family?

Odin gestured for them to come closer and Thor obeyed, escorting Tony with one giant hand on the human’s shoulder. Tony plastered his best diplomatic smile on his face and allowed it. What he would have preferred to do was call this one-eyed king on his bullshit, cancel the wedding, and head back home as soon as possible.

"Welcome, my son and future son-in-law!" Odin boomed, with the hint of a smile on his face. "Tell us your name, Midgardian."

Tony gulped, suddenly nervous, "My name is Tony Stark, Your Majesty." He was relieved to hear his voice come out relatively even.

"Ah, so _you_ are the Man Of Iron." The All-Father said, sounding pleased. "My son has told me much of your conquests on the battlefield."

"Oh Gee, glad to know I’ve made such a good impression on my future husband." Tony deadpanned, stealing a glimpse of Loki by a blonde woman's side. _Must be the queen_. Had Thor mentioned her name? Tony searched his memory frantically.

"Actually... It was I who told the All-Father about you, Tony." Thor clarified, cutting across Tony’s thoughts before turning back to Odin. "Father, I brought the Man of Iron here because he wishes to learn more about the conditions of this wedding."

"Of course. I am happy to explain everything about the binding--"

"Uh, excuse me, Your Highness?" Tony interrupted, trying not to sound too desperate. "If you don’t mind, I was hoping to discuss the terms _in private_?"

He could still feel Loki's eyes piercing through him, but he didn't care. He had no interest in letting all of Asgard know just how much he didn't want to marry their dark prince.

Odin fell silent for a moment, and Tony briefly panicked that he might have made things worse, until the king replied, "Alright. Thor, Anthony and I will talk in my private chambers."

Loki turned to Odin as the king stood, "Father, I need to go with you."

"No, Loki, we--"

"I _must_ talk to you!"

"Hey, that’s okay with me." Tony intervened when he saw where this was going. Part of him was relieved that he could no longer have these terse, shitty conversations with his own father. He looked Odin in the eye. "I was actually going to request that Loki be there too."

Odin sighed, "As you wish. Come." He commanded.

* * *

 

As soon as Odin closed the door to his chambers, Loki was the first to speak.

"Father, you are making a grave _mistake_." He said, looking irritably at the king. "You continue to claim me as your _son_ and insist that this is for my own good but you desire to marry me against my will?!"

Stark meddled once again, "That's _exactly_ what I was about to say!"

Stark had actually concurred with him?

"With all due respect, I don’t think that _marriage_ is really the solution here. I'm sure you can find something else to do with Loki for his punishment," the mortal explained, crossing his arms.

Hm, perhaps not as much as Loki thought.

Odin, however, was unamused. "Loki, _someone_ needs to take responsibility for your--"

"And why can't I be that someone?!" He still felt furious. He didn't want to be punished for his actions on Midgard until the whole story was out - the attempted genocide was indeed his fault, but he still needed to explain the Chitauri invasion - but _anything_ , anything else would've been better. "I am perfectly willing to take responsibility for my _misdeeds_. Do as you will. Sew my lips, take off my powers, _exile_ me. Do your worst. Just don't... _force me_ to marry Stark."

In that moment, Tony realized that Loki hated this marriage crap _even more_ than he did. The god of mischief was practically begging for any other punishment, but the All-Father paid him no mind.

"No. You may not think this will do you any good, Loki, but I know better." He then turned his attention to Tony, placing a hand on his shoulder. "And why don't _you_ want to marry my son?"

Tony fidgeted under the king’s intense gaze, clearing his throat and forcing his hands to his side so he didn’t cross his arms. Now was not the time to look confrontational. "No offense, sir, but I think a forced marriage is a bit drastic."

"Why did you volunteer, then?" Odin’s grip on Tony's shoulder tightened to the point of starting to hurt. "You came all the way from Midgard to dismiss me and my son in front of my entire kingdom?"

"Actually, in my defense, I asked to talk _in private_ \--"

"I was _generous_ enough to let you, Earth's Mightiest Heroes, choose a suitable groom from among yourselves. You were chosen, and you accepted, Man of Iron, so do not complain _to me_!" Odin's patience was wearing thin, and Tony was sure that his shoulder would be bruised when the king released him.

Loki chose that moment to intervene, placing his hand on the king’s extended arm. "The mortal still has a point. Father, I know that I've wronged you..." Loki starts, forcing the King of Asgard to turn around and look his son in the eyes. "I've wronged all of you, including those on Midgard. And I am willing..." He places his other hand on Odin's shoulder to keep the king’s attention, "To accept a fitting punishment."

Loki forced his features to remain still, his voice cool but with a tinge of urgency. He was lying for the most part of it, but the situation demanded it.

"And you would swear this is true, my son?" Odin looks at him, his blue eye searching for even the hint of a lie in Loki's green ones.

Loki’s gaze held firm. He would not concede defeat. He wasn't called "god of lies" for nothing, after all.

"Yes."

Odin proceeds to hug him, not giving him a second to adjust to the embrace. He swallowed dryly and stole a glance at Stark, who had his arms crossed and a disconcerted look on his face. Stark said nothing, though, so Loki paid him no mind.

"Will you accept any punishment I choose for you?" Odin suddenly asked, his palms rubbing little spots on Loki's back.

The trickster was careful not to let his mask fall – the All-Father believed him, and if he stopped the show now, there was a chance that the situation would turn out even more poorly - "Yes, Father. As you wish." He parts the embrace to show his smile. _Ah, now we’re getting somewhere_ , he dared think to himself.

"Excellent." Odin beamed, patting Loki gently on his cheek, "You shall marry Anthony, then." At that, he spun around, taking Stark's hand. "And you, Man Of Iron? Will you help my son?"

Tony was thrown completely off guard, "I uh... Well, actually..."

"Will you?" Odin repeated, his stern look fixed on Tony.

He swallowed. "Yes, sir."

"Very well" The king gave Tony’s hand to Loki, joining them both with his own. "I may sound like an old foolish man, but I trust my judgement. And now..." He removed his hands, "I'm trusting _you_ , Anthony Stark, with my son."

Both men looked startled, gazes darting from their held hands to each other's eyes and back to the All-Father.

Odin all but smiled, "I'll discharge you both from the announcement, however, you are both to remain in the palace in order to... become better acquainted with one another."

With a sly glance at Tony, he turned away from the couple-to-be and shut the doors behind him.


	4. Mother By Association

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I have the WORST timing in history  
> I was planning to update today but OFF THE RECORD updated and HA, watch as no one reads this fic. Oh well. When/if you guys decide to read it, this chapter will be waiting...  
> It was done quite sometime ago but Ally got busy ~~*cough* and distracted *cough*~~ so we talked it out and she said she works better with schedules, so from now on I'm gonna try to give her a deadline and such.
> 
> Also, I have no idea when I'll start to write chapter 5. I need to figure out a few things and real life is kind of kicking me on the butt constantly. But, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter :) It was by far the longest chapter I've ever written (and it used to be longer, it was 4k words and now it's 3950 lol)

Warm hands were still holding cold ones.

Neither man could tell for how long. Seconds, perhaps minutes. They just stood there, looking at their intertwined hands, feeling the distinct temperature difference from the other's hand as well as the roughness –  _softness_  – of it.

Suddenly, Loki caught himself in this foolish display of what could be mistaken for  _'affection'_  that his father made them do and jerked his hand away. Stark was too astonished to even react, which only made Loki more annoyed.

"Thank you for being completely  _useless_ , Stark." Loki snarled at him, crossing his arms. " _For a second_  I thought you'd be helpful. I guess I was wrong."

The mortal blinked, the glazed look gone from his eye and replaced with outrage. " _Excuse me?_!" He spoke as he stepped towards Loki, "You're the one who pulled out that  **bullshit**   _'daddy, I'm sorry, please forgive me'_ and you're mad at  _me_?!" Stark growled back at him.

"At least I made an attempt! And I was very close to succeeding-"

"Too bad Papa Bear didn't buy your shit  _for a second_!"

"Better to have tried than just have stood there, watching the show like an  _imbecile_!"

"Hardly. I tried to talk to him about this marriage shit, but you saw how he got when I hinted that I didn't want to marry his precious  _baby_ "

That was the last straw. In a swift move, Loki caught the hem of the mortal's shirt in his fists and lifted, bringing him closer to the god's face. "Now listen to me, you spiteful human." He started, looking right into Stark's livid brown eyes, "I don't want to marry you  _either_ , in case you haven't noticed. But there's not much we can do at this point, since you  _fucking agreed_  with Odin before he walked out of here..."

"I didn't  _'fucking agree'_ with him!" Stark retorted, face still close to his own, "He creeped me out! What was I supposed to say?  _'No sir, sorry sir, but your son still sucks'_?! He would've killed me!"

"That was the plan!"

"Oh,  _I'm sorry_ for not getting the fucking memo!" The Man of Iron practically roared, taking his own hold on Loki's armor, "But you're in as much crap as I am right now..." Stark said low, leering at Loki, "...So I wouldn't talk like that to the guy who's about to have control over you,  _sweetcheeks_."

Loki slammed the mortal's body up against the nearest wall, not caring at all if he started to bruise. Hel, he  _wanted_  to bruise this stupid man. "Did you forget who you're talking to, Stark?"

"Did _you_ forget who  _you're_  talking to, Rudolf?" He countered.

"I can tear you apart-"

"Your magicks are gone."

"My magic may be restricted, but my strength still remains." Loki grinned wickedly as one of his hands curled around Stark's neck, just enough to disturb the man's breathing. "I could kill you right now, if I so wished."

"I'm not afraid of you." Stark defied him through gritted teeth. "Your father? Yes. You?" He had the audacity to scoff, "Not so much."

If Tony were going to be honest with himself, he was  _just a tiny little bit_  scared. They were alone in the All-Father's bedroom, Loki pinning him up against a wall and with a hard grip on his throat. If the mad god so wished, Tony would be dead before anyone could come to his rescue.

_At least if Loki killed him now, he wouldn't have to deal with marrying the bastard._

The last thing he saw was Loki's furious features as the god tightened his grip some more, making Tony's vision start to darken until...

"Oh dear, am I interrupting something?" He barely heard a female voice before the pressure around his throat receded enough so he could breathe again, back straightening on the wall and feet coming in contact to the floor.

"No, of course not, mother!" Tony heard a hint of anxiety in Loki's reply, so he took the opportunity to open up his eyes.

Loki was still very close to him, but his face was turned to the door, where the queen stood looking worriedly at them. It was then that Tony realized that the only thing keeping him from falling was Loki's hold.

"Are you sure? Mr Stark doesn't seem very well..." Her concerned gaze turned on him. Loki's hands on his shoulder – when did they even  _get there_?! – were still grabbing him firmly, but this time without hurting.

"He's alright..." Loki's thumb started to rub little circles into his shoulders, "He's just feeling a little dizzy... isn't that right, Stark?"

Tony felt  _more than 'a little'_  dizzy, but he didn't want to argue right now. "Uh... yeah..." He replied, voice sounding too low and unsure to be his own.

The queen – what was her name, again? – approached him and laid a gentle hand on his cheek. "He must be exhausted from the trip here... Loki, dear, do you mind if I take him to his chambers?"

"W-What?" Tony asks, looking from mother to son then back to her. " _'My_ chambers'?"

"Of course, dear. Odin told me you'll be staying with us as a guest for a while," the queen calmly explained, taking his arm and – somehow – fully supporting him. He was feeling less dizzy than before, but still Tony feared that if she let go, he would stumble to the floor.

Better not look weak in front of her. Or  _Loki_.

 _Especially_  not that asshole.

"Why don't you go to your own bedroom, Loki? I'd like to have a word with you, after I'm done with Anthony." She said simply, but Tony could hear the steel in her words.

Loki merely nods. "Yes, mother."

* * *

His new...  _room_ was elegant. Simple, given that he's just a guest, but still considerably nice. Like everything else in Asgard, completely decorated with gold. But he had to admit: the bed was bigger than he'd expected. Considerably smaller than Odin's, sure, but still quite large.

When she walked him over to the bed and gently released his arm, Tony sat –  _fell_  – to the bed in a rather undignified manner. Time passed differently on Asgard – Tony was sure it had to be well into the evening on Earth, but still daylight continued to stream through the large windows. Tony was tired and undeniably grumpy. His conversation with Odin about the wedding had been a miserable failure, and he'd almost gotten himself killed shortly after.

He still had a bit of his manners left, though, so he motioned to his other side of the bed and asked, "Would you care to join me, my Queen?"

She smiled at him, sitting gracefully where he gestured. "How chivalrous of you, Mr. Stark."

"Please, call me Tony, Your Highness."

"Alright, Tony. Please, call me Frigga." She replied, calm smile never leaving her face.

 _Ah, so that was her name._  Loki's mother seemed to be nicer than he was, and nicer than Odin too for that matter. Maybe that's just how all mothers are.

Still, he liked her already.

"Something tells me you wanted to talk to me before I was allowed to sleep."

The queen crossed her legs and turned so she could completely face Tony and laughed gently. "Indeed. It would seem that you truly are as smart as my son told me. Or at least as perceptive."

"Oh yeah, Thor, right?" Tony recalled the conversation with Odin, before they went to talk in private.

"No." Frigga said simply, "Loki."

Tony furrowed his brows. "Wait...  _Loki_ talked about  _me_? To you?"

Frigga sighed, "Tony... Loki may have some... issues with his father... but I still talk to my son." She looks pensive for a second, "Or rather,  _he_  still talks to me."

Tony nodded knowingly. "Still, why would he want to talk about me? We didn't quite... get along." He put it simply, since explaining everything that had happened between her darling son and the avengers probably wouldn't be particularly well-received.

Except... if convincing  _Odin_  to cancel the marriage hadn't worked, maybe it could work with Frigga? She seemed to be a lot more understanding than that giant bearded space pirate.

Before she could reply, he hurriedly spoke up, "I mean, I did offer him a drink. I'm just a gentleman like that."  _Nice, Tony, show her how considerate you are while conveniently forgetting the fact that you were threatening the guy when this happened._ "But not only did he decline, he threw me out a window!" He couldn't quite keep the displeasure out of his voice.

Okay, so maybe he was cutting quite a bit of the story, but the defenestration was kind of hard to forget. Frigga laughed, though.

"I know. He told me about this."

Tony looked shockingly at her. "E-Even the part about throwing me out of a window?"

Frigga laughed again, "Yes. Though he gave me more specifics about the beverage offering."

"What... kind of specifics?" Tony asked with a skeptical eyebrow and kept his voice flat, but he couldn't deny his curiosity anymore.

"Oh, Loki and I didn't have much time to discuss... it's been two very tumultuous days and we have had very little time to properly converse." Frigga shook her head lightly. "But, he did tell me that out of that strange group, there was a handsome, smart man that offered him a drink." Her smile looked sincere, "He said he considered accepting, but decided to decline, given the circumstances."

Tony nodded, filing the  _'handsome'_  and  _'smart'_ remarks away for later (Especially 'handsome'). "Shame. Maybe things would've went differently if he had accepted." He smirked.

He hadn't forgotten about the threat that Loki and the Chitauri were to Earth. He hadn't forgotten the 80 anonymous people Loki killed in only 2 days, including SHIELD agents and, oh yeah that's right,  _Phil._  He  _would not_  forget Phil, but even Tony had to acknowledge that if Loki had accepted that drink, the story would've gone a different way.

Maybe Loki wouldn't have defenestrated him. Maybe they would've bantered some more, their own personal  _battle_  in parallel of the battle of New York. Maybe Tony would've flirted more, directly even, not just the casual ED joke after Loki's glowing stick of destiny failed.

On a second thought, Loki probably would've defenestrated him either way; it was like one of those unpreventable events. He could go back in time a thousand times trying to change the outcome,but would probably end up falling from his window anyway. Damn.

When Tony looked back at Frigga, he realized how distracted he had become, and apologized quietly.

"It's quite alright. Sometimes my Loki does that too, believe it or not."

He let out an embarrassed laugh, "So uh... you still didn't tell me what you wanted to talk to me about?"

Her calm expression gave way to surprise, "Oh, yes! Well... I'd like to apologize in behalf of Loki about earlier."

Tony was confused. "Uh...  _what_ exactly are you referring to?"

"My son threatened to kill you."

His expression fell with her admission. "Excuse me?"

Frigga reaches out to take Tony's hand, squeezing it lightly. "Believe me when I say, Tony Stark, that Loki didn't mean it. He was angry not so long ago, and the thought of killing you  _might_ have crossed his mind, but he would never go through with it."

Tony stared in disbelief.

"Ma'am- I mean... Frigga..." Tony started, holding her hand and trying not to look as incredulous as he felt. "I know that you have faith in your son, and that's nice... I wish I still had a mother to have faith in me..."

Bad idea, now he was thinking of Maria (she had always smelled of lavender, and smell was a powerful memory). He didn't give himself too much time to mope, though, as he quickly got back to the point.

"But... I think he was really trying to kill me."

Frigga moved her other hand to hold Tony's cheek, "Tony, I know that your first encounter with Loki didn't go so well." Frigga brushed her thumb ever so gently, "But I know my son. He may have done some things that I'm not exactly proud of, but I'm  _sure_ he wouldn't try to kill you right now."

"With all due respect, your Highness, he just did." Tony sighed, "I was about halfway to strangled before you happened to come in the room. If you hadn't, what would have stopped him?"

Frigga was sorry to hear it, but didn't take her hands away. "It was a moment of anger, dear." Her voice softened even more, as if she was explaining this to a child ( _her_  child, even). "I apologize for what he put you through, but I am sure that even if I hadn't intervened, my son would do what is right."

Tony fought the urge to scoff at that. Frigga was being genuinely kind to him; it would be more than just a little impolite to scoff.

"I really liked what I see in you, Tony." She spoke up again, standing up so she could kiss his forehead. "You may not believe my words right now, but I'm positive you will come to, in time."

The queen graciously walked to the exit, stopping by the door to say, "I know you will take good care of my son, Tony." She left, soft slippers making no sound on the stone as she walked.

Which brought Tony crashing to reality.

It was still happening. Despite his best efforts, he was _still_ marrying Loki.

_It could be worse, Tony._

He told himself.

_He could be ugly._

* * *

Loki wasn't quite tired yet; the last rays of evening light were still making their way through his window. But if he left his room, there was the distinct possibility of him being surrounded by all kinds of people he  _didn't want to see, so it was safest to stay in his chambers._

He was sitting at his desk, reading – or rather, running his eyes along the words – when he hears a knock on his door.

"Come in." He answered without looking away from his book, as his mother quietly entered the room. She walked behind his desk after closing the door .

"Everything alright, darling?" Frigga asked. She put her hands gently on his shoulders and started rubbing tiny circles with her thumbs, in all the places Loki liked best. "You look upset."

He sighed deeply and stopped pretending to read. "I couldn't persuade Odin to cancel the wedding."

She shook her head, "Dear, you know that when your father gets an idea in his head, it's hard for him to let it go."

Loki buried his face in his hands, "I know, but perhaps you could've  _helped_." He mumbled sullenly.

Odin  _never_  listened to Loki. He should've known better than to try to talk with him out if anything. When Frigga spoke to him, he at least made an effort to listen and  _consider_  what she said.

Loki was trying his damnedest to not blame his mother for this. For anything. But a small part of him couldn't help but wonder if she had even tried to talk to Odin about the wedding. When his sentence was struck, he hadn't had enough time to talk to her. He'd been moved to his bedroom, and any instance that he'd seen Frigga afterward, they'd resolutely avoided any talk of the events after his fall from the Bifrost.

He suspected that even now, even if he were absolutely forthcoming about everything that he'd been through, she would would not believe him. Or perhaps worse, she  _would_  believe him, but that'd give her (and Odin) more reasons to want this marriage to happen.

Either way, he had no choice.

Frigga's arms enveloped Loki in a firm embrace, her chin resting on his shoulder. "I know, sweetie, I know... but I'm afraid I share the same thoughts as your father."

That made him go rigid. It was one thing to  _assume_ his mother had agreed to all of this, and quite another thing to have it  _confirmed_.

He felt betrayed. Even more than before, when he thought it was just Odin and Thor against him.

Loki felt like he had lost his mother too.

Her embrace tightened, perhaps due to his silence and stiffness, and she started to speak again. "Loki, hearing this isn't easy, and I don't expect you to comprehend our decisions on the first attempt, but  _I do_  believe that marrying Tony Stark will be a good idea."

Could it be, that not even Frigga saw that this marriage was a terrible idea?

"You don't know him, mother." His own voice was but a whisper.

"Mm... perhaps not." She conceded him that, "But neither do you."

"I know him well enough." He lied.

If he were honest with himself, he'd admit to knowing next to nothing about Stark, other than that he was the Man of Iron and  _tremendously, revoltingly_ annoying. That was reason enough to want to avoid this marriage.

That and the _immense_  power Stark would have over him.

Frigga laughed gently, "No, you don't. You've met each other under different, more extreme circumstances." She explained, still holding him close and trying to soothe him. "That could very well change when you two spend some time together. Things can change."

"If we are left alone again, I'll kill him." Loki muttered grumpily.

Frigga's calm demeanor took on a hard edge. Her arms pulled away from Loki's shoulders and she crossed them against her chest. "About that- I'm not happy about what you did to Tony."

Loki turned in his chair, incredulity written into every line of his expression. "What did I  _do_  to  _ **Tony**_ , mother?" His voice practically dripped poison at the name.

"You hurt him. Not severely, but you gave me a fright when I got to Odin's chambers and saw  _that_ scene." Frigga looked as calm as ever, but her voice was stern.

Loki took a deep breath, trying to control himself. "What do you expect me to do? Apologize?"

"That would be great, dear." She smiled, but didn't uncross her arms. "I already apologized for you, but hearing the words come from you directly would go a long way, I'm sure."

Loki gritted his teeth. "I'm not going toapologize. If anything  _he_ should be apologizing to  _me_!"

"You physically hurt him, Loki."

"Well, he got on my nerves. Tony Stark is hardly a polite or considerate person!"

Frigga uncrossed her arms and took Loki's hands in her own, urging him to stand up. He was still furious at everything, and none too pleased with his mother, but whenever she held him he seemed to calm down. He found himself utterly torn between the desire to flee from her touch and the desire to remain within her reach forever.

"You both are very stubborn, my son." She said softly before embracing him again. "But sometimes, we have to yield in order to make progress with someone. If we don't take the first step, no one will."

He sighed then, and returned his mother's embrace, holding her closely. Being in her arms would never not be a release. He felt his throat is tighten and his eyes burn with unshed tears.

"I'm scared, mother." Loki let out in a shaky breath.

Her hand on his back resumed its movements, rubbing in circles as she comforted him. "It's alright, love. It's alright."

"I don't know what he'll do to me." Loki murmured, burying his face in her shoulder. "Why does this sentence have to be so cruel?"

"Loki, I've talked to Tony. He's a good man, and frankly, he seems to be more scared of you than you are of him."

"He should be." Loki laughed weakly.

"True. But my point is, if he really is such a bad person, do you think your father and I would trust your hand to him?"

Loki sighed. His true answer was ' _maybe'_ , but instead he said "No."

Frigga broke the embrace so she could look him in the eye. "Exactly. All we want is the best for you, my son."

"Do you really think _Stark_  is the solution?" He asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Yes." She replied with a smile, conviction clear on her face.

* * *

When Frigga left Loki's room, she felt drained. She'd never admit, but being a mother was certainly more stressful than being the Queen.

She loved it, though. She absolutely adored her sons and wouldn't trade them for anything in all of the Nine Realms.

Thor had always been closer to his father, while Loki was closer to his mother. Both parents loved their sons irrevocably, giving them the attention and love they deserved.

But, like every other family, they had their...  _issues_. Frigga had to admit it.

At first, when Odin had sentenced Loki to get married to one of the Avengers, she'd thought it was an absurd solution. Her poor baby shouldn't be forced to marry someone he didn't want to marry! In Asgard, many marriages were arranged, but Frigga had never imagined that her sons would have to go through such a thing.

There was no war coming, no need for an arrangement as this other than... well... Loki's punishment.

As Queen, she had to consider Loki the defendant (or culprit), and consider his wrong deeds during court.

As his mother... she couldn't help but worry about him.

As soon as Loki was sent to his chambers, Odin and Frigga had discussed each of the Avengers and their various merits. They also asked for Thor and Heimdall's opinions of each one of them. With a little bit of magic, they were able to see what Heimdall saw during the battle in Midgard.

Most of it wasn't exactly cheerful, but after seeing Loki's interactions with each Avenger. They felt prepared for whichever one would soon be their son-in-law (or daughter-in-law, if that ended up being the case).

Frigga found the Man of Iron humourous in spite of herself. He, out of all of the Avengers, had really caught her interest. She liked to think that Loki was similar to her, and was sure that he would definitely be interested in this Stark fellow if given a chance.

Which was why she had to make sure Tony would be interested in Loki as well.

She didn't like to think that she had  _lied_ to the hero, she simply... gave him a gentle nudge in the right direction. Some things she had said to him were true – _"Oh, me and Loki didn't have much time to discuss... it's been two very tumultuous days and we barely got time to properly converse."_ – others she'd said because she thought it would get the best reaction out of him –  _"But, he did tell me that out of that strange group, there was a handsome, smart man that offered him a drink."_ – but all in all, what she did, she did for love.

Frigga didn't lie when she said she liked Tony. A part of her felt bad for not being completely honest with the man, but without her  _little push_ , she doubted the situation even had a  _chance_  of going well.

Loki needed someone, that much was clear. Though Loki would have to be submissive to Tony following the terms of the marriage, Frigga had faith that the man wouldn't abuse his powers.

She trusted him. As did Odin and Thor.

Though they still needed to explain the rules of the marriage to Tony.


	5. What do you mean by "control"?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... hi? Sorry for the delay?
> 
> Things happened, one of them being a writer's block, and I went months without writing. Then I got back and decided to join the Frostiron Bang, so yeah... sorry again.
> 
> I'm also apologizing because I'm updating this fic today and I'll spend the rest of my free time writing for said Bang. Because I need to get 15k and unlike popular opinion, writing 15k is HARD. Especially to me, this isn't being an easy challenge at all.
> 
> I'm not 100% happy with this chapter but *sigh* i made you guys wait too long. hopefully it's not total shit.
> 
> Also: YEP, DA RULES ARE HERE.
> 
> And this chapter used to be 4,4k but my beta read it and we discussed and well, now it's a little bit less. Like I said, writing is hard. I hope you guys still enjoy it, though :)

He slept too much.

Tony was sure of that. Maybe it was because of the time differences between Earth and Asgard – days in Asgard somehow seemed twice as long – or he was just tired because of the amount of stress he had to deal with in just a few days.

He still felt pretty exhausted, but who would even dare to go back to sleep when Thor’s powerful voice boomed in your ear?

“Tony! Time to wake up, my friend!” Thor opened the curtains of the (already pretty lit) room, then checking on the man splayed on the oversized bed, “You need to get ready for our lunch banquet. Father will explain to you the rules of the marriage!”

That peaks Tony’s attention, quickly sitting up and brushing the sleep out of his eyes. Because one, he was _hungry_. Starving, even. And two, _Odin would explain the rules_.

Finally. After what seemed to be forever, he's going to find out what the hell he's supposed to do with Loki. Besides being his husband, that is.

Thor had said he’d be able to _control_ him, but Tony still didn’t know at what extent. And what ‘control’ meant to Asgardians. Maybe it wasn’t even that, they all seemed to be drama queens, what with the Shakespearean style, so what these people called _control_ could easily mean  _quiet down_ to Tony. Right?

It wasn’t anything serious.... _Right?_

“Anthony?” Thor brought him back to reality, looking mildly worried, “Are you alright?”

Tony waved a hand in the air, “Yep, just fine. A little tired, but I’m used to it.”

Thor furrowed his brows, but didn’t question it. “Are you ready for lunch?”

He sighed. “In a minute... I just can’t go dressed like this, can I? I don’t think Papa Odin would approve of this.” He threw his legs over the side of the bed, unwrapping the blanket from himself in the motion and showing his boxers.

* * *

 

Loki was politely sitting by the big banquet table, his hands on his knees, knuckles white from clutching his fists tightly. His expression blank, but his mind running a lot of images and scenarios.

Stark commanding him to kneel, for example. Stark humiliating him by using his new powers the way the All-Father surely wanted him to.

Gods, this would be so _mortifying_.

As if on cue, Stark himself arrived with Thor by his side. Both wearing casual armour; though Stark’s was a little more than casual. He wore mostly red, with a touch of gold, doubtlessly to mimic the man’s own iron armour.

He had to admit, the mortal looked... _decent_.

“Welcome, Anthony! Have you slept well?” Odin stood up from his seat, gesturing Stark to sit across from Loki.

The mortal nodded, “Yes, sir. Thank you for your hospitality.”

He knew better than to counter the All-Father.

Once everybody sat at their respective places, the servants started to bring the food. Just the usual boar and similarly large animals as well as the beverage, but it seemed to stun Stark nonetheless. Loki didn’t know what was the usual food his kind were used to eating, but perhaps this was a little unusual for him.

They ate and discussed about a few subjects. Odin did the talking, actually. Stark nodded, smiled a few times even – the kind of fake smile that even Loki was used to wearing, the kind that didn’t quite reach the eyes but only the truly observant could see through it.

He watched Stark for some minutes, losing himself in the details of his face, before the mortal caught him and both men averted their gazes.

Loki was allowed to look at him, wasn’t he? They’d soon get married, he’d be Stark’s to command, and while that thought still nauseated him, it didn’t change the fact that it was still happening.

So maybe... maybe Stark was a little more than  _decent_ looking. But good looks wouldn’t suddenly make this arrangement okay.

“So... I suspect it is time to tell you, Anthony, what you really want to know.” Odin spoke solemnly, setting down the flatware on his plate.

* * *

 

Loki had been eyeing him practically the entire lunch and that _really_ made Tony uncomfortable. He pretended to listen to Odin and nodded a couple of times, but what he really wanted to do was address the fact that _Loki was staring at him, damn it_.

And it wasn’t even a vicious look, the one that they were used to trade by now. Loki just... _looked_ at him. Almost expressionless, if it wasn’t for the way his eyes danced on Tony’s skin and his eyebrows furrowed ever so slightly at how intensely he was studying him.

Tony was about to yell at him to stop when--

“Mr Stark? Are you listening?”

Tony cleared his throat, forcing himself to pay attention to the All-Father instead of his exasperating son.

“No, sir, sorry sir. I was... mildly distracted by my fiancé’s beauty.” He replied with a charming smile, sure that _that_ would soothe Odin’s annoyance.

It earned him a chuckle from the King, a wide smile from the Queen and a frown from Loki.

“You’ll have plenty of time to admire my son’s beauty when you’re finally wedded. Now, it’d be best if you paid attention to the rules.” Odin’s calm expression took place again, before he started to recite.

“You shall be given special wedding rings, filled with magic. Loki shan’t leave your side, while you both wear those. You shall have full control over Loki Odinson,” An eyeroll and a heavy sigh from said son, probably due to the usage of his last name, “Whatever you command him to do, he shall do it without question.”

Tony raised an eyebrow, turning his attention to Loki instead. The god had his chin supported on his right hand, his elbow placed on top of the large banquet table and a feeble expression haunting his face.

“Because... we’re going to be husbands, right?” He directs his question to Loki, the man sighing heavily at him. “I mean... As your husband, I can tell you what to do... right?”

And didn’t that just sound douchey? Not even in Earth was that how marriages worked. But Tony still couldn’t quite understand what this bullshit talk about control was, until--

“The rings are magical, Stark.” Loki replied to him as he straightened his back, crossing his arms. “I _literally_ have to obey you because of its magic.”

Tony stayed silent for a few seconds, maybe even minutes. Nobody else dared to speak, probably waiting for his response. His expression stayed as blank as possible when he asked next, “And... what if you _don’t_ obey?”

He didn’t expect Loki’s biting answer to be: “I _can’t_ not obey.”

Tony felt his palms sweat, felt his throat dry and whatever appetite he must’ve had before was gone by now. “So... magic?” He glared at Odin now, looking for answers. “Is that how you think your son will be _redeemed_? By giving a ‘mortal’ unlimited power against him, through magic, and to use at free will?!”

And he was actually outraged by it. Not only would he have to give up on his previous life, he’d actually have to  _be responsible_ on behalf of both him and Loki! It was too much of a responsibility that Tony did not want and did not even ask for.

In that moment, he made the mistake of glancing at Loki, and he was surprised to see that his hands were curled into fists on his lap, he avoided Tony’s gaze at all costs.

And that’s when it hit him: this wasn’t just about Tony. It was mostly about Loki. And while Tony still thought he deserved to be punished about what happened in New York, and still thought he wasn’t an innocent flower, _this_ alternative... seemed a bit too extreme.

Leave it to Tony Stark to take pity on the guy who almost conquered his planet.

“We watched every single one of you so-called Avengers, we _knew_ it wouldn’t be just any mortal, Man of Iron.” Odin’s cool voice took over, his stern eye telling him to be careful on his next words.

Fuck it. Tony Stark was never one to be careful.

“And what if it wasn’t me, huh? What if it was, say, Hawkeye?” He kept raising his voice, unable to calm down once he started, “If you’ve seen the footage, you know what he did to Clint! You should know how badly the guy wants revenge. How much he’d _abuse_ of this kind of power, this kind of knowledge!”

“Mr Stark--”

“And yet you don’t care! You’d still let it happen anyway, wouldn’t you? It doesn’t matter who takes this task, as long as they are the ones to set Loki straight, isn’t it?” He raised from his seat, hitting his hands on the table while glaring at the All-Father.

“Enough!” Was his growling answer. “I will not tolerate this kind of tone and savage words thrown at me!”

“Oh, how bad! Because I’m not going to marry Loki either!” He shouted rather childishly, but given his anger at the moment, he couldn’t care less.

“Be wary of what you say, Anthony Stark. You already agreed to this arrangement!”

“Guess what? I _can_ and _will_ dissent!”

“You can’t!” Odin snarled, standing up as well and ready to attack Tony at any moment.

“Watch me!” He replied with a defiant smirk, right as he exited the room without a second look.

* * *

 

Loki sat there speechless for a few seconds, perhaps even a full minute. Did... Stark just _defend_ him? The day before they were in a similar situation, but he was just defending his own interests. This time, however, Loki was sure the mortal at least _thought_ of him while throwing a tantrum.

Because that _was_ a tantrum. Stark was a foolish man to defy _The All-Father_ , of all people. Neither of them were happy with the arranged marriage, but even when they tried to rationalize with Odin, it didn’t worked. What made him think screaming would change a thing?

Nevertheless, Thor immediately stood up and announced, “I’ll go talk to him. No need to worry, father.”

As soon as he left, Loki also excused himself. He wanted to know what Stark was up to.

* * *

 

Tony had no idea how he’d manage to go back home. He came via Tesseract with Thor, but he wasn’t sure _where_ the god kept it and even if he did, how was that thing supposed to work?

Plus he knew next to nothing about the city, so he decided to go back to his room and hope he didn’t piss off Odin too much that the guy’d want to kill him. As shitty as this situation was, how would everyone on Earth react when they find out he died because of his fucking mouth?

He’d meant everything he said, though. And he wasn’t about to apologize, Odin be damned.

Just as he tried to remember which was the direction back to his room, he heard Thor’s shout. “Man of Iron! Wait!”

Tony sighed but turned around, “Thor, seriously, how could you know _that_ was your brother’s punishment and--”

“I didn’t.” The blond immediately said. “I knew only the basics that my father told me. Not the details.”

Tony crossed his arms, “But you still think it’s a good idea?”

Thor offered a sheepish smile, “While the obligation to obey you no matter what due to a spell worries me, I still think he needs someone--”

“Aw, _come on_ , Thor!” Tony exclaimed, turning his back to Thor again and walking _anywhere_. He was getting really tired of this bullshit.

“Alright, alright!” The blonde put a hand on his shoulder, and even though he didn’t force Tony to stop, that was enough. “I know you tire of this conversation. But hadn’t you finally accepted this marriage?”

Tony removed Thor’s hand from his shoulder, still glaring at him. “That was _before_ I knew I had to play Nanny Overlord. This is too much!”

“I’m aware, but,” He put both his hands on Tony’s shoulders now, “If you really resign, one of two things could happen.”

Tony raised an eyebrow.

“My father would still make you two marry each other. Or, he’d let you go, but still would marry Loki to one of our friends.”

Tony frowned, but stayed silent.

“So... either way, _someone_ is going to have to take responsibility for my brother. And I’d honestly rather if it were you.”

Thor’s eyes looked right into Tony’s, his tone almost _pleading_ for him to accept it. He looked at the man for a few seconds, but Thor was being completely sincere. In another situation, Tony would’ve accused him of using The Puppy Dog Eyes Of Doom, but this was a serious situation.

“ _Fine_.” Tony gave in with a sigh. “What will happen to me once I see Odin again?”

Thor shrugged, “I can’t tell. It could be something serious or he’d just demand an apology.”

Tony frowned. Either one seemed bad, but maybe if he apologized his penalty wouldn’t be so harmful.

“No need to worry, my friend. I’m sure that when you tell him you intend to marry Loki, he’ll forgive you. For now, let me show you around.” Thor said reassuringly, resting a hand on Tony’s back and leading him to the way.

* * *

 

Tony didn’t have much of a say. Not that he was too opposed to the idea of learning more about Asgard, but rather because he wanted some time alone. Considering that soon he’d have Loki by his side at all times.

But he couldn’t say no to Simba. Besides, he didn’t have much to do anyway. It wouldn’t hurt to take a look at the architecture of Asgard, get to know a little bit more of their costumes.

Everything was in gold, bright and light colors. Also, gigantic. Tony barely heard Thor talk, easily getting lost by such a stunning place.

No wonder Asgardians were so arrogant. Everything was fucking gold.

“Anthony? I’d like you to meet my friends, The Warriors Three and Lady Sif!” Thor said cheerfully, leaving Tony’s side to hug said friends in his usual bear hug.

Once all of them got a hug, he turned back to Tony. “This is Fandral The Dashing,” He gestured to the blond guy with playboy hair, “This is Volstagg The Volumous,” Now gesturing to the big redhead, “Hogunn The Grimm,” Gestured to the asian looking Asgardian, “And Sif.” He smiled at the raven haired woman.

“Why doesn’t she get a title?” Tony asked, tilting his head Sif’s way.

“Because I don’t _need_ a title.” The woman quickly answered him, her voice firm.

Tony thought she and Pepper would get along wonderfully.

“Sorry,” He put his hands in the air in defeat, “Didn’t mean to sound rude.”

She smiled and nodded, resting a hand on her heart and bowing slightly. The others followed right after.

Tony did the same greeting.

“This is how we do it in Earth.” He took each one of their hands and shook them, earning a confused expression from them.

“Interesting.” Said Fandral, looking at his hand. “What else do you Midgardians do differently?” He smirked, raising a provocative eyebrow.

If Tony didn’t know better he’d say the guy was hitting on him.

“Sorry, Fandral.” Tony pointed to the imaginary ring on his finger. “But I’m an engaged guy.”

They all laughed.

“My apologies Anthony Stark. Hopefully your soon to be husband won’t cut my head for it.”

Tony opened his mouth to answer, but got cut off by Sif.

“Cut your head? For doing him a favor? Unlikely.” Sif laughed, “I’ll bet he’ll gladly give Stark to you if that means he’ll be free.”

“Uh, I’m sure I’d have to _want_ to be with Fandral for that to happen.” Tony said, crossing his arms.

When the so-called Dashing looked at him with an offended air, he explained, “No offense, but you’re not my type. I’m not really into blonds.”

Blonde women were another thing, but he didn’t feel the need to add.

“So... you don’t mind marrying Loki?” Fandral was the one to ask, still looking butthurt.

Tony shrugged, “I’m not completely okay with this arranged marriage, but I can’t deny he’s... good looking.”

Silence.

“What? I mean, sorry Thor, but your brother is... pretty hot, to be honest.”

“Stark, he’s _evil_.” Sif said, looking at him like she couldn’t believe he thought Loki was attractive. As if what he said was a blasphemy.

Oh, _come on._

“Listen, I don’t think he’s a poor innocent child. He attacked my planet, for fuck’s sake. I was just saying--”

“You’re naïve, Tony Stark. You don’t know him like we do.”

“Jeez, She-Ha, I just said I think he’s attractive!”

“Listen to yourself. For all we know, he has already bewitched you.” She muttered, her gaze still accusing him.

“Bewi-- _he doesn’t have his magic_!” Tony raised his voice, incredulous about that much bullshit. “Do you really think that if he could still use his magic by now, he wouldn’t have escaped? Or tried to kill me or something as serious?”

“It might be a trick.” Fandral supported Sif, “He might only be faking his powerlessness and when you least expect it, he’ll strike you like the snake he is.”

“Wow, nice things to say about a friend.” Tony retorted, feeling the rage from earlier build up inside him again. “But no one’s that good faker. Not even the god of mischief. I mean, Odin--”

“Why are you even defending him if he tried to hurt you?” Volstagg asked, more with confusion rather than anger.

Tony blinked. He wanted to yell more, but... they got a point.

He didn’t know why he cared. Why he _should_ care. But these guys were being rude to him, and well... he couldn’t lie and say he didn’t feel just a little bit sorry for Loki, for having them as friends.

He was still a bad guy, sure. Tony didn’t suddenly forgive him for what he’d done. But taking a look – no matter how brief – about the guy’s background made Tony think.

“Whatever.” Was his final answer. He got in enough trouble today, no need to argue any more.

Without waiting for an answer, Tony left the place and hoped to find his bedroom without having to ask for directions. He hated to feel so lost, even in his mansion when he was a kid he knew exactly where he was going.

This time, he found it easily. Maybe because he was close to his room, anyway. He closed the door, stripped from his armor, leaving only the undershirt and pants on and collapsed on the bed. He was pretty sure the day wasn’t even nearly over, but he was exhausted already.

If living with Loki feels like this, he’d call it quits.

* * *

Loki bit on his inside cheek for a moment, unsure if he should just knock or go in or give up altogether. He heard everything Stark and Thor’s friends said, from the beginning. But the mortal had been arguing with everyone today, so it was likely that he wouldn’t take Loki’s ‘visit’ well.

Except this was the second time he defended Loki, in the same day no less. Loki’s confusion was even greater than The Warriors Three and Sif’s, since they didn’t know Stark. Not that he knew him better, but...

He couldn’t be so kind. That had to be a trick.

Stark was selfish, much like Loki himself. For all he knew, the man’s anger just concerned himself. And yet...

Loki knocked on the door.

“Go away.” He heard the mortal mumble.

Loki rolled his eyes. “Stark, it’s me. I’m coming in.”

Opening the door, he saw Stark sprawled on his stomach, face hidden in the pillows.

“I didn’t let you come in.” His muffled voice said.

“We’re not wearing the rings yet.” Loki said, closing the door behind him and sitting on the end of the bed. He didn’t wish to break into Stark’s personal space.

The other man righted himself, coming to a sitting position to face Loki. “Right...” He cleared his throat. “The rings... yeah.”

“What do you want?” Stark asked with a serious expression.

“I heard your argument with Thor’s friends.”

Sometimes, there’s nothing more shocking than the truth. Stark’s surprise could agree to that.

“Huh, eavesdropping much? Didn’t know you were into gossip.”

Loki chuckled dryly, “I’m not ‘into gossip’. 

I merely wished to know why you got so defensive earlier, with Odin. And you so happened to be defensive again, with them this time.”

Stark sighed, bringing his knees to his arms and holding them in place. “You can’t deny this is a shitty arrangement.”

Loki nodded, “It is. However, I wasn’t the one who threw a tantrum in front of the All-Father.”

He frowned. “Call it what you want, but you can’t blame me for getting mad.”

“Certainly not. Though that’s not the real reason why I’m here...”

Stark raised an eyebrow.

“I’m here because... you defended me.” Loki didn’t know how to put it, didn’t even know if that was what the mortal’s intentions, but he still said it.

And he avoided his gaze all the same.

“What? Are you ashamed that I did it? Because the god of mischief can’t take kindness from anyone, especially not a ‘mortal’?” Stark spat, his tone starting to rise again.

“I... just wanted to thank you.” He said low. “You’re right, I don’t like to be treated kindly by a mortal. In spite of this, I am a prince. Or was. And I do still have manners.”

He looked at Stark, whose confused brown eyes were staring at him intensely.

“So... thank you. Even if it wasn’t your intention. Then again, you did it twice today.”

Silence. And then:

“You’re shitting me, right?” Stark asked in a mocking tone.

Loki blinked. “Pardon me?”

“You don’t _thank_ people. That’s not something you’re capable of doing.”

Loki furrowed his brows, “Excuse me? I  _just_ thanked you for that and you’re the one being rude.”

Stark scoffed, “Enough with playing around, Loki. I did agree to marry you, but that’s it. Don’t expect me to believe in you anytime soon.”

Loki stood up, looking accusingly at him, “You argued with _five Asgardians_ because of me, Stark. If there’s someone ‘playing around’, it is you.”

The short man also stood up, though on top of the bed he seemed taller. “I don’t even know why I acted the way I did! I just did it! Maybe I should’ve kept silent, since this tongue of mine keeps getting me into trouble.”

Loki sighed, rubbing his fingers on his temples. “You’re really difficult to deal with, do you know that?”

“Sorry honey, it’s part of the deal of marrying me. Can you blame me, though? God of lies and all that.” Was Stark’s bold answer. “Fine, I did somewhat defend you. Don’t mention it. It won’t happen again, don’t worry.”  


Loki looked back to stare at Stark. Neither man moved, both searching for something in the other’s eye, neither one finding it or even knowing what to search for.

Without saying a word, Loki got off the bed and exited the room. Stark was right, they didn’t have to be nice to each other, especially not if he was in Stark’s command

But judging by the man’s behaviour, he was just as tired about everything as Loki was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also I'm changing the tags a little bit. I'm taking off the Slow Build because I'm not entirely sure if this is _slow enough_ , plus: i finally explained the bounding issue.  
> Soon you guys will get to SEE IT XD


	6. It's Been One Week Since You Looked At Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m not 100% happy with this chapter but I don’t think it is COMPLETE garbage either. I think it had some nice moments and a little bit of the obligatory angst.
> 
> The thing is that I made you guys wait too long already and I want to get the plot moving because I had planned the wedding to be in chapter 7 but upon writing/editing/etc, I realized that lol NO WEDDING YET. SORRY.
> 
> I can’t promise anything, BUT if everything goes as planned, it’s probably going to be in chapter 8.
> 
> Also I’m sorry about the title of the chapter. Upon first glance you may think it’s an angsty title that I came up by myself but it’s actually a [Barenaked Ladies lyric](http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/barenakedladies/oneweek.html) LOL I'M SO SORRY I JUST THINK I'M FUNNY
> 
> Just in case this ruined the mood for you, go back to pretending it was a serious title *hides*

Tony had been in Asgard for a week now.

He had already dealt with Odin, or rather,  _Odin_ had already dealt with _him_. Much like a father does with their son, he screamed for a bit –  _"How dare you speak to your All-Father like that!"_  – and, for lack of a better word, grounded him.

Because he spent that entire week on his room. He only ever got out to eat – the only times he actually saw Loki, after their last argument – or when Frigga took pity on him and came to 'free him out of his prison' for a few minutes, so to speak.

Still, Tony expected a punishment. Tony expected even _torture_ , since Loki's family proved to be a-okay with their youngest prince getting married to an almost complete stranger and giving the same stranger that much power and control over him. The idea still seemed insane to Tony, but well... he did all he could to stop it, but the marriage was still going to happen.

There was nothing to do in Asgard. He knew no one there, apart from the Royal Family, and he was far away from home and his toys. He only stayed in Asgard because he needed Thor to go back, and the blond told him he was busy.

"So... I'm going to get married Asgardian style, right?" Tony asked, crossing his arms.

"I talked to father and he is willing to make it a bit Midgardian so you'd feel more comfortable." Thor answered, smiling at him.

Tony rolled his eyes. "So Papa Odin has forgiven me for my sins?"

Thor actually had to stop and think about it for a second. "I would say so." He nodded, then added: "He doesn't  _hate_ you, Tony. He actually thinks you're the best choice."

Tony scoffed. "Yeah, I know that." He mumbled to himself.

His last day in Asgard was short, thankfully. He woke up to Thor announcing it, saying they'd just have one last meal before they departed. He also said it was the last time Tony would see Loki, before the actual wedding day, so Tony could – a.k.a he  _should_  – say goodbye to him.

It was all very fast. He dressed himself, ate, thanked Odin and Frigga for their hospitality – mostly Frigga, to be honest – and...

"See you at the wedding, then." Tony said awkwardly, unsure if he'd look right at Loki while saying it or if he could just walk away by now.

Loki was looking at him when he nodded and said, with all politeness, "Until then, Tony Stark."

Loki was good at masking his emotions, but Tony imagined that even the god felt a bit awkward at this goodbye.

The few times they saw each other were short too, and they barely spoke a word to one another. But it had been a week and Tony's anger had, surprisingly enough, subdued – even if it didn't vanish completely. He didn't know if a week would be enough for  _a god_ , but it had been enough for him.

However, he didn't like the false mask that Loki liked to wear when around him, as if even though they were soon to get married and Tony would soon have control over him, Loki would still keep his poker face like nothing major was about to happen.

That pissed Tony off. He wanted to wipe that mask from his face.

Maybe he could've thought of a better plan, if he had time, but the kiss he stole from Loki was more of a spur of the moment thing.

It was just a peck on the lips, nothing special – and it had meant nothing either – but it got the desired effect. Loki widened his eyes, ready to start a fight – or probably rip Tony's lips with his own hands and feed them to him – but Tony grabbed Thor's arm, nodding him to get the Tesseract working, and his last words to his  _dearest_  Fiancé were: "See ya."

* * *

Loki had a ton of words to say – since he couldn't lay a hand on him – but the stupid mortal was already gone. He looked around to see his parents trying to hide their smiles, satisfied with the little show of _false_  affection Stark just put up for them.

"Oh, by the norns, he was faking it!" Loki screamed accusatorily and pointed to the direction Stark and Thor were just a few seconds ago. "I didn't even enjoy it! He had no right-"

"He  _is_ your fiancé, my darling." Frigga said, approaching him to put a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"That doesn't give him the right to  _kiss me_  as if we've been lovers for such a long time." Loki spat it out but still tried to control his nerves. He'd scream at Stark, he'd scream at Thor, he'd scream at Odin but he would  _not_ do it to his mother.

Frigga caught his face between her hands so he could look into her eyes while she said, "I know, my love. But maybe this kiss was a good sign." She said cheerfully, trying to prompt a smile from him.

Loki didn't believe that, but he sighing a little and gave her a polite smile. "Perhaps..." He lied. Gently, he removed her hands from his face, "But I still didn't like it."

He excused himself and went back to his chambers and his thoughts, thinking of ways to make Stark pay for the stolen kiss.

* * *

As soon as Tony and Thor arrived on Stark Tower, Tony had to reach for the nearest surface so he'd attempt to hold on to. His head was spinning too fast, even though he still had his eyes closed, and if it didn't stop soon he'd probably vomit right then and there.

Fucking vertigo.

Suddenly he felt a hand on his back and another on his arm, directing him to sit on the couch.

"Are you alright, Tony?" Thor asked him, sounding close to him. Tony took a deep breath and opened his eyes, realizing Thor had sat down near him.

"Yeah. Just... I don't think I'll ever get used to it." He scoffed, moving a hand through his hair and sighing.

"If you don't mind me asking..." Came the thunderous voice, catching Tony's attention again. "Why did you... kiss my brother?"

When Tony looked at Thor, the blond was trying to hide a smile.

Oh. Oh no. He thought- he thought they-

"Don't look at me like that, I still don't like him." Tony replied quickly, getting up on his feet. "I did that just to piss him off. That's all."

The thunder god blinked. "If it meant nothing, why did you-"

"Told you. To get on his nerves. To make him stop looking so calm while around me."

Thor got up from the couch, retrieving both Mjölnir and the Tesseract that rested on it, "You probably succeeded. He looked absolutely livid before we came back."

"Mission accomplished." Tony said with a grin.

Thor shook his head and laughed. "I hope you know what you're doing, my friend."

"I always know what I'm doing." Tony countered.

Well... not  _always_. But he was sure of it this time. Kinda.

"If you don't mind, I shall visit Lady Jane while I'm on Midgard."

"Sure, big guy. Go visit your girlfriend, tell her I said hi."

Not that Tony had officially met Jane Foster, but she was a fellow scientist and the God of Thunder's  _girlfriend_ , so she seemed like a nice girl.

"Thank you. But have you told Lady Potts about the marriage?"

Shit. Pepper.

Shit, shit,  **shit**.

"Uh, yeah. I did." He said, scratching the back of his head. "I mean, I told her it was a  _possibility_. But I didn't say..."

He trailed off. Shit, he'd been on Asgard for  _a whole fucking week_  and he didn't even tell her. She left a bunch of messages for him  _and he didn't even listen to them_.

Thor narrowed his eyes. "I hope you're not planning to cheat on my brother, Anthony."

Rolling his eyes, Tony said, "I wouldn't dream of it, Thor."

"Good." He smiled, then walked to the balcony and swung Mjolnir on his hand to take flight. "Good luck with Lady Potts. Farewell, Tony."

Tony waved him goodbye but immediately turned around to get to the bar. A drink. He needed a drink before ending things with Pepper.

Shit. He'd never be ready for that. He probably should've broken up with her for good, instead of giving them both false hopes.

"JARV, you up?" He called his AI, quickly pouring Jack Daniels in a glass.

"As always, sir."

He felt the drink burning his throat as he gulped it all down. "Call Pep. Tell her I'll explain everything face to face."

"Pardon sir, but hadn't you already explained the Loki issue to Miss Potts?" JARVIS asked, his voice hinting worry.

_Yeah, JARV, I'd rather skip this step too. But it's necessary._

"That I did. But it's not over yet."

* * *

The first thing she did when she saw him was hug him, tightly. The second thing, however, was to punch him in the shoulder.

"Why didn't you return my calls, Tony?" Pepper asked, a hand holding her purse but he imagined it was more so she didn't slap him again.

"I actually just came back." He was quick to answer, raising his hands defensively. "And maybe you don't know, but Asgard doesn't really have telephones. Or any technology, at all." Tony sighed.

Tony guided Pepper to his living room, unsure of how to break the news to her. Except she must've known already, right? He kind of did it already some time ago, this was just the definite end.

Not like he  _wanted_  to end, but... what choice did he have?

"JARVIS told me the day you went to Asgard, you knew about my calls..." Pepper said as she sit down on the bed, crossing her arms. "So why didn't you call back? Tell me where you were going, _when_  you were going."

"It was... kind of a last minute decision." He said, scratching his head. "I kind of only wanted to talk to you once I had solved everything."

"And...?" She prompted, searching for his eyes. Tony still avoided looking at her.

He decided to ask something else. "Pepper... why did you even call me the day after...?"

The woman noticed his sudden change of subject, and sighed. "You do know that all America  _knows_ about your engagement, right?"

That's when he looked at her. Pepper was frowning, but he saw a tinge of worry on her expression.

"Yeah, uh... before Thor picked me up, JARVIS told me that everyone knew..." Tony replied, waiting for her to continue.

"Tony, do you even know what they're saying about you? About  _me_?"

Oh... no, certainly not that kind of detail.

He made a hand gesture for JARVIS to show him the videos and articles about the wedding, and soon his entire room was filled with holographic images. He didn't focus on just one thing, he tried to keep an eye on every single bit of information that was cast before him.

There were some interviews, with some SHIELD agents – disguised as Stark Industries workers – and the Avengers.

Tony looked at an article, which was more interested in his sexuality and how his relationship with Loki would work. He quickly dismissed it.

Back to the videos, The Avengers assured everyone that this was just politics and Tony hadn't outright lived to his playboy status and cheated on Pepper with Loki, of all people. That made him frown.

He looked back at Pepper. She was starting to cry.

"They say you couldn't 'keep it in your pants'... They say I was probably just a beard."

"They think I'm  _gay_?" Tony almost choked, glancing at a gossip channel saying that 'they knew it all along'. "Pepper, you know I had some adventures with men and I'm not opposed to the idea of-" He stopped that train of thought. It's not the time to think about that. "But I'm not gay! If I were, you  _know_ I'd have told you!"

"I know, Tony!" She exclaimed, getting up from his bed, both of them standing up. "But  _they_  don't care. They just want to sell gossip and now you've given them enough to last for at least a year!"

"Hey!" He grabbed her shoulders, trying to calm her down. "If that's what worrying you, we'll figure something out. I can call a lawyer and we can get them to pay us-"

"I don't want  _money_ , Tony!" She screamed again, breaking free from his hold. "You don't get it, do you? This is the last straw, not the beginning of everything."

"Okay, I know I fucked up a lot, but-"

"But  _what_ , Tony? Did you miraculously make Odin change his mind?"

Tony sighed and moved a hand through his hair. "Well, no... I couldn't- He wouldn't listen-"

Somehow, Pepper looked more devastated. "So what are you trying to do, Tony? Keep me as your mistress while you pose as a good husband for Loki?"

That made him flinch. They stared at each other for some moments, Pepper likely waiting for a response of some kind.

When she received none, Pepper moved towards the door. Tony went after her.

"So, this is how you want to end this?" He asked her, his lungs failing him and feeling too nervous to ask anything else.

"We never worked, Tony." She said at last, looking back at him. "We tried, _I_ tried, but... it just wasn't meant to be."

He stayed silent by the door, unmoving. Too many things running on his head but none which he could actually say to her.

"I just... don't think I was ever the first in your list. And I'll  _never_  be..." Her voice cracked near the end and more tears rolled down her face. "I'm sorry, I just... I quit." She said as she walked to the door, ready to walk out of his life forever.

"I'll arrange the papers for- for the new CEO." She hiccuped. "If it's you or someone else you choose, I don't care, I just... can't." As she reached the door, opening it, she took a final glance at him. "Goodbye, Tony."

She left him, this time for good. He immediately got his Stark Phone on his room, clicked an emergency number and, "Hey, Bruce? I kinda need your help, buddy."


	7. Preparations Must Be Made

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the time it took me to finish this. Truth be told, I am/was (don't know for sure) having writer's block, so everything I managed to write was "shit" in my eyes. So I just kept rewriting a few scenes over and over again and wasn't in the mood to write the rest and kept procrastinating, etc. Then I finally got the chapter done, but waited for Ally to give it a read and help me a bit. Thus, it took me longer than originally expected.
> 
> Now I realize that in order for me to get something done, I need pressure. Otherwise the something may never get done lol
> 
> But I need to tell you guys that it might take a while for me to update FCM again. Because   
> this year, I'm participating on NaNoWriMo. I'm determined, I'll do it. So I need to be absolutely focused on the month of November. That and I also got Thor 2, my own birthday, and two holiday gifts I need to write.
> 
> So I'll only write the marriage chapter (yes, Chapter 8 is the long-awaited marriage!) after all of that is done. Which probably will be in January lol Hopefully, you guys will be patient for that.
> 
> As a reward, this is the longest chapter I've written for this story.

Bruce wasn't sure if letting Tony drink his sorrows would solve anything, considering how  _drinking_  +  _Tony Stark_  generally proved to be a bad equation.

But his friend wanted to go to a  _ba_ r to do so, and Bruce had to patiently remind him of the number of reasons why this was a bad idea.

"Tony, everyone already knows about your marriage. Going out would only entice them to get an interview out of you, which is the last thing you need right now." He advised.

Tony was too agitated, wanting to get past Bruce and likely do something stupid, but living with Tony for a few months tested a lot your patience and in return could make you more tolerant towards his man-child behavior.

Tony huffed, "I don't  _care_ , Bruce! I don't care if they get me on the way to the car, I don't care if they invade my tower right about now,  _I. Don't. Care_! My life is over now. Pepper is gone, I'll have to marry a sadist and–"

"Do it for me, then?" Bruce said, mantaining his calm tone. "You know how I don't like crowds…" He added.

The Pity Card was a low blow, but sometimes it worked.

Tony immediately went soft, but was determined not to look at Bruce. "Fine… but I'm still drinking."

"Only if I choose the drink for you."

The billionaire narrowed his eyes, "I didn't call you to be my nanny."

"You called me to be your friend, and that's what I'm being." Bruce said as he went to Tony's kitchen, decidedly having the last word. Tony seemed to have given in, slumping to the couch and rubbing his temples.

Bruce knew Tony wouldn't have any tea around, so he came prepared. He boiled some water and quickly prepared the tea.

When he came back to the couch, Tony was groaning loudly.

"Are you fucking shitting me? Chamomile tea?" He said between his hands.

Bruce rolled his eyes. "You need to calm down, not drown yourself in alcohol."

Tony took the mug from Bruce's hand, still frowning. "Had I known you'd be such a stick in the mud, I'd have called Rhodey."

Bruce shook his head. "He'd say the same, Tony. You need to stop drinking."

Tony made a face, but took a sip of the liquid.

"So…" Bruce prompted, looking at his hands and fidgeting. "Why didn't you call Rhodey first? He's your best friend."

Tony rolled the tea around in the mug for a bit, contemplating it. "I'm… kind of scared, actually."

That earned a confused look from Bruce.

Tony elaborated. "Rhodey… uhm… I don't think he'll approve of the wedding. At all. Which is fine, I mean, _I_ don't approve it either– but in the end it doesn't matter what  _we_  think and– He's an army guy, you know? You know how the army is, and…"

Bruce nodded, needing to hear no more. "You think he won't approve because Loki is a guy?"

"More because Loki is a _bad_  guy." Tony replied, taking another swig from the glass. "Either that or he'll call me stupid for letting Pepper go." He sighed, then added. "Him and Happy both."

Bruce awkwardly put a hand on Tony's shoulder, squeezing it gently. He's not very comfortable with touching, but he recognized that sometimes it was needed.

"I'm sorry about Pepper, Tony." Bruce said honestly, "And hey, if Rhodey is really your best friend, he  _will_ understand your reasons."

Tony scoffed and took a drink of the tea. "She broke up with me anyway, so…"

Bruce frowned. "What?"

Tony averted his gaze again. "Yeah, uhm… I know I was supposed to break up with her, but… turns out she was faster than me." He said the last bit in a self-deprecating laugh, shrugging. "I guess even if I didn't have to marry Loki, she'd still break up with me."

Bruce bit his lip. "Was she that unhappy?"

His friend shrugged again. "Apparently, yes."

The scientist nodded in sympathy. He squeezed Tony's shoulder again. "I'm sorry for… well… everything, Tony."

The whole week Tony was in Asgard, the Avengers were taking care of the media. Every once in awhile, someone asked them how Tony was chosen for the 'duty'. Clint and Natasha were the ones who answered most of the questions, partially because SHIELD already had almost everything covered, but also because Steve and Bruce would probably have ended up revealing that Tony lost a game.

They said the decision was taken responsibly, everyone weighing the pros and cons of each Avenger, until they all came to the conclusion that Tony was the best suited for the job. Naturally, everyone asked about Pepper, and the group's best answer was that the couple had already broken up by the time Thor came back with those news.

Not many people bought it, but apparently, Tony and Pepper's relationship hadn't been looking so stable in the media's eyes.

Tony sighed, patting Bruce's hand on his shoulder. "Yeah, well, now it's done." He said as he got up on his feet. "Come on, let's go have fun while I still can."

* * *

Tony didn't remember much after the conversation with Bruce. They went to a bar, and despite Bruce protesting the whole way over, there were no casualties.

The bar was one Tony had already frequented and the owner was his friend, so neither of them got problems about being famous. Anonymity was difficult to get nowadays. Tony didn't usually care about privacy, but after the Pepper thing, he just wanted to be alone for a while.

But not before having a few drinks first.

Pepper wanted him to be at a meeting tomorrow, about the possible new CEO, but all Tony said was that she could choose whoever she wanted. He didn't care and he didn't want to deal with his responsibilities – or with her – for now.

Except… he kind of had to.

He had to at least do the preparations for the marriage, or at least debrief SHIELD about it. So the next day, they ended up sitting him down for some sort of interview on Fury's office.

"So, Stark… had a nice vacation back on Asgard?" The man asked, leaning on his desk table and looking at Tony with a stony expression.

Tony just shrugged. "As nice as being trapped in the medieval era can be. Why do you ask, Nick, did you miss me?" He raised an amused eyebrow.

Fury snorted. "More like I needed you back so we could talk about  _business_."

_Right. About that…_

"What do you want to know, Fury?" Tony sighed, rubbing his forehead. He really wasn't up to this conversation.

"Why, details about your marriage, of course!" Fury replied in a mocking cheerful tone, "I want to know all about the 'control' you'll have over Loki, and how they'll make it possible. You don't expect me to believe that your future husband will obey you out of the goodness of his heart." He narrowed his eye at the end, crossing his arms and waiting for Tony's answer.

Tony crossed his own arms in an act of defiance, also raising an eyebrow. "You doubt my discipline skills, Fury? I'm capable of teaching him a few things–"

_Whoops, that was accidentally kinky._

"I'm serious, Stark. You know something, I know you do."

Tony rolls his eyes. "I don't know much." He said at last. "And even if I did, you know I wouldn't tell you." He added with a smile.

Fury hit his balled fist on his desk. "Enough with the bullshit, Stark!"

"Alright, fine. This week, saturday I think, is the wedding–"

"Saturday is in two days."

"–what?!" Tony uncrossed his arms out of surprise, sitting properly on the chair.

"It's thursday, you dumbass. What have you been doing all this time?!" Fury spat, clearly losing his patience.

"Uhm, on Asgard? I just came back yesterday, how will I have time–"

Fury cut him off by clearing his throat.

Tony gave an exasperated sigh in response.

"Fine, so… the wedding is Saturday. The rings do all the magic. That's all I know."

Fury was unamused. "You spent a  _week_  with those people and that's  _all_  you know?!"

"Well, yeah. Didn't get too excited to learn about all the tidbits. I mean, I just had to forcefully end a relationship…"

Fury straightened his back before standing up from his own chair. "Fine. That's all I wanted to know. You have two days to prepare for your great day, Stark. If I were you, I'd run with the arrangements."

Tony stood up as well, ready to leave the office. "Come on, it's just a simple wedding. Nothing fancy. Why should I lose my head with the preparations?"

* * *

He didn't lose his head with the preparations, but his friends did.

He was laying down on his bed, arms covering his eyes and attempting to sleep. Right after getting rid of Fury, he came back home and drank some more – after all, he had nothing better to do and wasn't really in the mood to do it even if he did. His head was killing him with a headache as strong as the one he had right before going to Asgard.

All he needed was some sleep. Maybe for a few months until everything calmed down. Maybe if he put everything off enough he wouldn't have to marry Loki.

Just… sleep.

He was rudely awakened shortly after by an incessant knocking on his door.

He groaned and rolled to the other side of the bed, his back facing the door. Couldn't he even catch a bit of sleep before being disturbed again by life?

The next moment, whoever it was burst into his bedroom. Tony was startled out of his drowsiness, almost jumping out of the bed. When he sat and looked at the door, the Avengers – sans Thor – were all crossing their arms and looking at him.

He rubbed his face tiredly, "Can't you guys see I'm kind of busy here? Trying to sleep?"

Bruce kindly sat on the end of his bed, facing him. "Well, Tony… I've been talking to everyone about this situation you're in, and…"

"You look like shit." Clint interfered, choosing a direct approach.

Tony raised an eyebrow at that. He looked back at Bruce, "What makes you think that?"

"Well, those are not the words I used, but…" Bruce started again, but soon stopped, fidgeting with his hands.

Steve was the next one to talk. "Bruce told us you've been drinking a lot since you were chosen."

"Technically, I lost the game." Tony retorted, frowning at the blond. "And what, can't a guy have a few drinks now and then without being considered depressed?"

" _Actually,_ you were so nervous when we played the game that you  _showed me_  the shortest paper." Natasha supplied, still leaning by the door. "And you didn't have a few drinks, Tony. JARVIS has been keeping an eye on you for us and you've been drinking too much."

Tony's mouth was hanging open, "I've been  _what_?!"

The woman shrugged, at least having the decency to look apologetic.

Tony frowned. "JARV, you've been showing them videos without my permission?!"

"My apologies, sir, but it was necessary." The A.I's monotone voice replied. "I was becoming worried about you."

Tony clicked his tongue, getting even more annoyed. "Okay fine. I've been drinking a bit. Whatever." He huffed, his headache starting to grow bigger. "So, since I'm a poor depressed and alcoholic man, can I get some sleep?"

They all looked at each other and then, "No."

Tony just covered his face with his blanket and whined, " _Why the fuck not_?" His muffled voice said angrily.

"Because." Bruce gently took the blanket out of his face and out of reach, throwing it to the floor. "You'll get married in two days. You have literally two days to get prepared."

Tony stubbornly kept his eyes closed. "And?"

Next thing he knew, he was already standing up, with Natasha and Clint picking up his clothes from the floor and tossing them to Tony.

"And despite us thinking that you're totally screwed, you still have two days of freedom." Clint offered a smiled.

"And… I thought that maybe this marriage doesn't have to be as awful as you think it'll be." Bruce said with a shy smile. "Which is why you're coming with us to get prepared."

* * *

Tony thought that by 'get prepared', Bruce meant 'to suck it up'. As it turned out, it meant both.

Each Avenger was assigned a different task. Steve got decoration, Bruce got food, Clint would take care of the place and Natasha would handle entertainment and, as she said herself,  _grooming_.

Ha. Very funny.

Natasha insisted on waxing him. Yes, waxing. Tony refused at first, even fought against it. After all,  _why_  would he even need to wax? He never needed to – he never  _wanted_ to, actually – and it's not like Loki and him would be going at it like rabbits. Sure, he was attractive, but Tony wasn't counting on sex anytime soon.

Especially not with him bottoming. At least not right away. At least not before he was sure that Loki wouldn't hurt–

The woman took advantage of Tony's spacing out and all but strapped him to a reclining bed, telling him he 'needed to look good for his future husband, whether he liked it or not'.

"I'm doing you a favor, Stark. Trust me." The redhead said in a calming voice, patting his arm as if to assure him.

Tony still didn't trust her. Well, not much anyway.

Waxing was painful. He didn't have all that much hair, but it still hurt a lot. She started on his legs, coating the hot wax all over one, placing the paper strip on a part of it and gently - or as gentle as  _Natasha_  could be - pulling it out. Tony yelled.

"Relax, Stark. It's weird at first but you'll get used to it."

He better. His leg was burning and the strip didn't even catch most of it, only a little part. "Jesus, this fucking hurts. How can you women do this all the time?"

Natasha just rolled her eyes, "Suck it up. You felt worse pains in your life."

Well... when she put it like that.

Without a warning, she quickly put another strip on the same leg and pulled. Tony only had time to yell again. The second time doesn't hurt any less, so it seemed.

"Tell me again why this is a good idea." He gritted between his teeth, his fists curled in tight balls.

"Because you want Loki to have faith on you, and that you won't abuse of your powers, so we agreed that looking presentable to him was a good start." She replied in a sickeningly sweet voice, ripping yet another strip of paper.

Tony just yelped this time.

" _I_  didn't agree to it." He grumbled, looking away.

"By  _we_ , I meant  _me_  and the Avengers." Her grin was vicious.

Tony fought his restraints once more, trying to break free at all costs. "Why the fuck are you guys even ganging up on me?! I thought we all hated Loki."

Natasha shrugged. "More or less. But Bruce thought things would've been easier for you if we keep Loki in a good mood."

Another rip, another yelp.

"I can 'control' him, remember? I can take care of this alone."

"Aw, but isn't this being fun?" She asked as she just ended coating his other leg and ripping a strip from that one. Tony screamed, albeit less loudly than he did at first.

"You and I have very different opinions about  _fun_." He spat, chewing on his inner cheek so he'd stop - or try to stop - the vocal responses of pain.

Natasha finished her job with the legs in silence, every now and then singing in russian just to annoy Tony. Once that was over, he thought he was free for the day, but as it turned out she still wanted to wax... a more intimate part of him.

He fought and tried to escape yet again, but Natasha caught him before he could succeed. This time, they spent the time in complete silence. Tony out of shame – really, if it were just any woman waxing his  _ass_ , it'd be humiliating enough. But it was his co-worker, his friend even, and of course it made it worse. – and the Widow out of professionalism. Tony wondered how many times she had done this to a friend but quickly shut that thought down.

The situation was awkward as it was. No need to get a boner now.

* * *

Bachelor parties are not for the groom. They're for the  _friends_  of the groom. It's a way of saying goodbye to your 'lonely days' and welcome the married life, they say. But Tony knew that was bullshit. Bachelor parties were like a funeral, except instead of the guy being dead, he was more like a zombie.

Was he alive? Was he dead? A little bit of both.

So it was up to his friends to have fun and say a last goodbye to the poor guy. After all, even if he was still alive after getting married, he wasn't going to be the same person.

Which was why Tony thought,  _why do I even bother_? True, the idea of having a 'last night of freedom' wasn't even his, it was Clint's. But Tony was in no mood to party. Tomorrow, he'd be a married guy – to someone who he couldn't care less about – and then... what? Loki was a god, immortal. How much time did Tony have left to live? 20 years? 30 years at most, if he was lucky and his liver didn't give out first?

So that was it. His time was running out and he'd spend those last few years playing house with a psychopath. Neat.

Guess a last night of freedom wasn't such a bad idea.

All of the Avengers were taking him to a strip club, including Rhodey and Happy. Tony hadn't seen Rhodey even before the whole thing exploded on his face, so he was nervous about it. Maybe since this was his last party his old friend would give him some slack.

The strip club was in a particularly upscale part of Manhattan. Tony couldn't remember having been there before. The owner seemed to remember him and quickly gave him the King's Suite - as he called it. Most of the guys were excited, apart from Steve who only kept repeating "Tony is engaged, we shouldn't be here! Maybe it's better to have a party just for us.", and Bruce, who kept quiet and was fidgeting with his hands.

"Clint, you know  _I_  shouldn't be here." Bruce whispered to the archer, avoiding Tony's eye contact. "I could- you know...  _The Other Guy_  could show up if he... uhm...  _gets too excited_." He hissed the last part, truly worried about that happening.

Barton scoffed, patting Bruce's shoulder. "Relax, Banner. We'll get you outta here if you look greener than usual."

The scientist sighed, hunching back on his chair. Tony moved a hand through his hair, "You know what, I'm not in the mood either. Maybe we could-"

"Aw, come on Stark, chill out a bit." Barton chuckled as he ordered beers for everyone and waited patiently for the girls to show up.

Thor was sitting across from Tony, taking in the scenario and looking interested. "What exactly is about to happen, my friends?"

Natasha, who sat near Clint, answered, "Some girls are going to come here and look sexy for all of you." Her voice monotone and her body as still as a rock.

"Yeah, about that,  _why_  are you even here?" Tony couldn't help but ask. He didn't know much about Natasha, at least he didn't know how much of what he knew was true. So maybe she liked ladies, maybe she didn't-

And maybe Tony should stop thinking about that.

She raised a perfect eyebrow at him. "What? I thought we were friends, Stark. I'm just joining your bachelor party." Suddenly, she reached for her bag and pulled out a magazine. "However, I don't think I'll need to  _actively_  enjoy it."

Everyone laughed as she started to skim through the articles. If Tony was correct, his memory was starting to get back to him, and this particular strip club served not only women but a few men too. He pondered about telling her that and seeing Barton's priceless face of jealousy. That'd serve him right, since he hadn't let Tony and Bruce – and Steve too, dear old Captain Goody Two Shoes – leave or even choose the place or what to do.

Rhodey and Happy were sitting on Tony's right side. The two of them had been silent most of the ride there. Maybe they were a little intimidated by the Avengers, or maybe they wanted to discuss the Pepper/Loki thing but didn't know how to start.

Tony sighed and made the first move. "Right, so by now I think you both were at least debriefed about current events. Questions?"

He sounded a little too rough, even to himself, but he was truly nervous. Everything was going to hell too damn fast and there was a possibility that he'd also lose his oldest friends. Hell, he lost Pepper, lost his freedom, so if he was about to lose anything – or anyone – else, he wanted to get it over with.

Both men looked at each other before Rhodey broke eye contact and said, "Why you?"

Alright. Easy question. Easy answer.

"Lost a game." Was the quickest reply. He got momentarily angry at it, after all, according to Romanoff,  _he_  gave the cards away. Damn it.

"A game? You all really did solve something like this with  _a game_?" Happy asked, sounding incredulous.

Tony rubbed a hand on the back of his neck, "Well... yeah? No one was going to volunteer."

"You lost a game against  _five_  other people?" Rhodey spoke a little louder, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Well... okay, so... no." Shit.

Rhodey and Happy waited for him to continue but then the strippers had arrived. One for each men, but they wouldn't get close to them before they chose which one was theirs.

"Alright Stark, since this is your big night, I'll let you choose first." Clint eagerly said, gesturing to the six fine ladies. "I'll even pay for you, as a wedding gift!"

Tony rolled his eyes, and gestured to the first woman he saw, which was directly in front of him. A pretty girl with black hair, a killer body, and green eyes. The eyes he only registered when she was already stepping closer to him, straddling his hips.

That was when he registered who she looked like.

Fucking fantastic.

Thor immediately got up from his chair, wanting to reach Tony and tear the woman away from him. "Stark, what are you doing?!"

Aw no, this was the  _last_  thing he needed. A protective older brother.

Clint grabbed Thor's arm, "Hey big guy, calm down. This is exactly what's supposed to happen."

The god frowned and aggressively pointed at Tony, "Am I supposed to see Stark  _defiling_  a young lady right before my eyes?! While he's promised to my brother?!"

Natasha calmly said, "It's all part of the show, Thor. Tony isn't even allowed to touch her, she's just going to dance for him."

Bruce and Steve looked more out of place than he did. Bruce trying to breathe calmly, while Steve looked as red as a tomato and avoided any and all eye contact. Happy wasted no time and requested the ginger girl and Rhodey looked about to walk away from all the madness.

Tony shifted on his seat so he could look at Thor better, even though his girl was still attempting to get all of his attention. "Thor, trust me, I'm not gonna do anything with her. This is just for fun, which hey- I'm not having! So uh... yeah, just calm down. If I so much as touch her, you're allowed to hurt me."

He was saying that just to calm the god down, but apparently Thor took his  _promise_  at heart. The blond slowly sat down, narrowing his blue eyes at Tony, a silent ' _I've got my eye on you_ ' hanging on the air.

Tony thought of telling him how much the girl currently on his lap looked like Loki, a way of saying 'Hey Thor, no need to worry, I've got your brother on my mind at all times! See?', but then everyone else would've noticed and they wouldn't let him forget that.

The girl started to actively grind on him, likely asking him for more attention. He gave her an apologetic smile, gently moving her away from his lap before picking up the conversation he was having with Happy and Rhodey.

Rhodey had chosen a girl for him too, but he was more interested on his beer. Happy, on the other hand, seemed to be the one having the most fun out of all of them.

"So... about the game that I lost..."

Rhodey immediately shifted his attention to him. Happy was a little reluctant, though.

"I took Thor out of the game, for obvious reasons. Same with Clint. Bruce and Steve weren't comfortable with the idea, so..."

"Wait, they weren't  _comfortable_  with the idea?!" Rhodey sounded just a tinge angry and all but hissed the word. He didn't want to call attention to their conversation.

"Well... yeah. Bruce would've hulked out at the first sight of the guy, and Steve was born in the 40's."

His peripheral vision told him Clint and Natasha were paying close attention to the convo, but right now he couldn't care less. He was just telling the truth to his friends.

"Tony... you gotta admit that the psycho  _deserves_  a hulk out, right?" Happy asked him, confused as to why Bruce would've been such a bad idea.

"And as much as I respect Captain Rogers, he should've had adapted to the twenty first century by now." Rhodey added. "Not to mention that he's from the military, whatever mission he's told to participate, he should do it. Without discussion."

"If the Hulk is a bit too much, at least Barton would've taken  _good care_  of him." Happy supplied sarcastically, laughing at the idea.

"And if you truly wanted the guy to have someone to care for him, why didn't you let Thor be that guy?" Rhodey asked, as if that was the best choice of all time.

"Because he's his  _brother_!" Tony started, not believing on what their friends were proposing. "And because Barton would've intentionally tortured the guy!" And hell, after all the shit that Tony's been through, he'd never wish that kind of torture to anyone. Not even his worst enemy. "Because Bruce is a genuine nice guy, with a bad condition, and  _he_  too isn't that into torture!"

The more Tony pointed out his reasons, the louder he accidentally got. And the more the others heard him clearly.

"And because even though Capsicle and I started on the wrong foot, I wanted to prove myself to him, alright?" He cleared his throat, fully aware that said Capsicle was paying attention.

Because no, Tony wasn't a hero. He'd never be one. But he was trying his best to be a good person and to help others, so shouldn't that  _count_  as something?

"So yeah, while a part of me thought the 40's excuse was kind of bullshit, I let him go with that."

He cleared his throat again and then looked at his stripper, who had fully stopped by then. Sighing, he gently lifted her out of his lap so he could leave the place.

He decided to cool down in the bathroom, since the exit was on the other end of the room and he wanted to get out of there quickly. He'd apologize later for the little show.

But Happy and Rhodey went after him, and before he can protest, Rhodey is talking.

"Look, Tony, I'm gonna be honest with you. Your reasons for removing some of the Avengers out of that stupid game are good." He rested a hand on Tony's shoulder. "Really, man. All of that was honorable of you. But…"

And that was when Happy took it from there, "But you're our friend, even before you were an Avenger or even a super hero. And we're worried about you."

"If this is really your choice, and not just a game you've lost, then we'll be okay with it. But if not…"

"...Then you're just being a fucking idiot." Happy supplied in a not so gentle way.

Tony sighed. They weren't explicitly talking about Pepper, but Tony knew exactly what they meant.

"I know that I may not want to marry the guy..." Now it was him who put a hand on their shoulders. "But really, guys, who else is better to marry the psycho other than me?" He gave them an arrogant smile. "I mean; I'm volatile, self obsessed and don't play well with others. Does that ring any bells?"

"I'm serious, Tony. I worry about you." Rhodey replied, his voice full of concern.

Tony tutted. "I'll be  _fine_ , Rhodey. He'll only touch me if I want him to."

A thought that Tony was avoiding at all costs.

"Good." Rhodey said at last, giving him a manly hug. "Good." He repeated.

"So…" Happy started, but waited until both men broke the hug apart. "About Pepper…"

Tony groaned loudly. "Enough about that. Isn't this supposed to be the last night of my life as a free man? I should be having fun!" He exclaimed as he exited the bathroom, going back to the party.

But before things could go back to normal – or as normal as they were ever going to get – Thor grabbed him and walked with him to a corner of the room.

Goddamn it, more talking.

"Listen, Thor–"

"Man of Iron, I'm sorry." Thor boomed, looking every bit apologetic. "As much as I don't approve of this Midgardian party, I should have had more faith in you."

Tony smirked and patted Thor's hand, in a silent request to let his arm go. "It's okay, Goldilocks, if I were my old self I'd probably go for it." He admitted.

Thor smiled. "But you are a changed man. A fine gentleman."

Tony laughed loudly, "I wouldn't really use that word, but okay."

Thor squeezed his shoulder, "I'm very happy that it is you who will marry my brother tomorrow."

And there it was.

Tony shrugged. "Yeah, well… you heard all I said earlier about the choices, so… yeah."

Things were about to get more awkward, he felt it.

"My apologies that my brother couldn't come today."

_Called it._

"Uh… why would he even  _come_ , Thor?"

The thunderer blinked. "Isn't this a party for everyone involved? My brother will no longer be… a 'bachelor', as you say."

"Thor, he should have  _his own_  bachelor party." Tony started to explain, "That's how it works here. The groom and the… groom, have their own parties with their own friends."

As soon as Tony said it, he remembered that Loki basically had no friends.

Well, shit.

"But, you know, _I'm_  'Midgardian'. He's not. I don't know what you do in Asgard to celebrate–"

"We spend the night with our fiancés."

… Wait, what?

At his surprise, Thor explained. "We spend the night with our loved ones, to see if the love is true and if it is really what both want. It is a night of truth, shared passion and whatever else the couple needs or wants so they can tell if the marriage is still going to happen or not."

"Cute." Tony replied dryly before he could catch himself. "I mean– me and Loki? No love at all. This is basically politics, so I don't think your Asgardian tradition is really valid here." At Thor's sad look, Tony added, "Sorry."

"I understand." He nodded. "My brother, too, said that. Which is why he chose to spend the night alone."

Tony really shouldn't feel sorry for the guy. He really shouldn't.

He cleared his throat. "I imagine he is enjoying his last night of freedom as well." And chuckled at his own semi-joke.

No time for pity over the god of mischief. It was his own fault that he had no friends– well, he had to have at least  _one_  friend back in Asgard, right?

These gods were at least thousands of years old. Tony couldn't imagine being alone –  _completely_  alone – for thousands of years. Even if he never had a real family, he had friends. He had Rhodey, he had Happy, he used to have Pepper – Tony tried to swallow the lump that formed on his throat – and now, he had the Avengers.

So Loki had to have someone too.

With that thought in mind, Tony enjoyed the rest of the night.  _Loki will be fine_ , he told himself, swallowing down his sudden worry for the man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, a few comments about a few scenes: I WENT CRAZY AND KEPT SAYING "ARTISTIC LICENSE" WHILE WRITING THEM.
> 
> Because I know that Bruce isn't one to touch people a lot, but Tony needed a hug and they're science bros so I was like "lol artistic license"
> 
> There wasn't an actual need for Natasha to wax Tony but I wanted to write that funny scene so "lol artistic license"
> 
> Strip Clubs probably aren't like that but I've never been to one before and with the new writing method that I have, I don't have much "time" to do research (just very, very quick ones) so "lol artistic license"
> 
> And whichever other scene that you think is odd, LOL ARTISTIC LICENSE.
> 
> Because most of the time I worry too much and don't get anything done, so... I apologize if I get _too_ crazy with my artistic license :\


	8. A Wedding, A Wedding, We're Going To Have A Wedding!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... hi?  
> I can explain about the wait. In fact, I made a whole post about it [here](http://isahbellah.tumblr.com/post/84434886425/why-it-took-me-so-long-to-update).  
> With that said, I finished writing yesterday (april 30th 2014) but made you guys wait for too long and Ally couldn't beta it for me until sunday, so I told her I didn't need it.  
> Any errors you might find is because no one proofread this but, as I said, I made you wait too long.

Reading a book the night before your wedding wasn't so bad. Loki was right where he wanted to be, doing exactly what he wanted to be doing with whom he wanted to be with.

Alone.

He persuaded Thor into letting him return to his chambers and spend the night by himself. He had no interest in participating in Stark's morbid 'bachelor party'. Loki didn't know what mortals usually did in such a night, but he wouldn't want to know if they shared a piece of the Asgardian culture.

It was common knowledge on Asgard how the ceremonies happened and what the couple did the night before. Though neither Loki nor Thor had ever been married in the past, they knew people who were.

Volstägg was married, and while Loki had been on his early teens when that happened, he remembers how the man was ecstatic even days after it had already happened. He told Thor of how special their first night alone was, and all the details he learned about his bride. Loki couldn't help but eavesdrop a bit, curious as to why learning about your fiancé's flaws and behaviour would be beneficial to either person.

Even if Midgardians didn't share a night like that, Loki wasn't keen on finding out.

He heard a knock on his door and immediately knew who it was. Odin had  _hated_  his decision to stay on his quarters and Thor went back to Midgard to participate of said night.

"May I come in?" His mother's sweet voice called.

"Come in, mother."

He knew what she wanted to talk about - even if it wasn't clear on her expression, Frigga always was the one to try to put some sense in Loki after a discussion or quarrel. This time would be no different, despite the fact that they solved this peacefully.

Sitting on his bedside, she wasted no time with asking, "Why did you not want to spend the night with Mr Stark?"

He momentarily took his eyes from his book, only to reply, "I thought it was obvious by now?"

"That's not how you're supposed to talk to your mother." He could hear the frown in her voice.

Sighing, he put the book aside. "Mother, I appreciate your concern, but-"

"This could have been a great chance, Loki." She interrupted him softly, taking his hand in hers. "A chance to meet the man you're about to marry, how he truly acts when he's not being the Man Of Iron-"

"Yes, of course, because this is my last choice before finally marrying a stranger and I should definitely spend my time with him instead." Loki couldn't hide the exasperation on his tone, avoiding looking Frigga in the eyes.

This was his last night of freedom and even  _his mother_ wanted to take it away from him.

 _As if I won't spend the rest of his miserable life with him already_.

 _As if anything that has been happening since I came back from that populated rock was any of my_ _ **choices**_.

"I understand your aggravation, my son." Frigga brought him back from his thoughts with kindness in her voice and a sympathetic squeeze of his hand. "But you have to trust me when I say that Anthony will do  _good_  for you. Do you think your father and I would have made such an agreement did we not trust him?"

"The agreement wasn't about Stark," Loki commented with a sigh, still refusing to look at her. "It was about  _an Avenger of their choosing_. It could've been just about anyone-"

"They're good people, Loki." Frigga insisted, searching for his eyes, "We know what we're doing. That the Man Of Iron volunteered to wed you was not a coincidence."

That's when he chose to steal a glance at his mother. With all her calmness, and yet she seemed determined. He frowned his eyebrows slightly.

"What are you implying, mother?"

As a child, he and Thor used to joke that their mother could foresee the future, because every time they pulled a prank or did something forbidden, she was there to chastise them before they had even done anything.

However, it was never proved that she could indeed see the future. For a long time, he thought it was just his childish imagination combined with Thor's, and that all mothers were like that.

It was only the night before Thor's failed coronation day, when she subtly tried to change his mind about even going, that he started to believe again. She hinted that something bad would happen, which made him uneasy but he didn't falter. He asked if it wouldn't be unkind and a tad selfish of him to miss his own brother's special day - he had no idea what would happen or how it would change his future, or even his  _past_.

Frigga nodded in understanding, not wanting Thor to notice the sudden change of mind of his brother, and respected his decision to keep his plan going - if she really knew what his true plans were and or the entire outcome of it, he had no idea, now he prefered to think not. She gave him a kiss on the forehead, told him she loved him unconditionally and left.

Now he knew what prompted such reaction. Now he regretted everything starting from that day.

Back to the present, Frigga simply smiled at him. "In time, you will know, my son."

Loki sighed. Frigga stood from the bed, ready to leave the room, when Loki asked, "Will you keep me company tonight, mother?"

Might as well enjoy his last night with the only person he truly cares about.

She beamed at him. "Of course, darling."

 

*******

 

He spent the night talking to his mother about anything and everything. Frigga didn't mind, she seemed glad to keep him company on such a 'special night'. The only topic that they avoided - Loki more so than Frigga - was Stark.

They shared laughs and a few smiles, though Loki's weren't as genuine as Frigga's.

When morning came, it was her who woke him up. "Rise, Loki. It is time."

He chose to wear simple clothing, considering that he was sure once he got there they'd make him change outfits again. So a stylish green tunic with leather pants looked good enough.

Odin wore his white and golden ceremonial armour, less bulky and more intricate. His mother's gown had similar colouring, but it was far more delicate looking.

Odin made a face at him once he saw what Loki was wearing. His only answer was, "I'm being practical,  _father_. Had I dressed with my usual armour, it would only make changing clothes later more difficult."

He  _could_  remove his clothing with magic, but not for the time being. The All-Father knew that, so he made no further comment.

Upon Thor's arrival on the Observatory, the blond smiled at his family. When he saw Loki's clothes, he furrowed his brows. Loki's cold glare killed whatever remark the thunderer was about to make.

"Ready?" Thor asked them, showing the Tesseract to the All-Father, who caught the other handle of it.

Frigga took hold of Odin's waist, who reciprocated the action with his other hand. Loki grabbed Thor's arm, just tight enough so he wouldn't have complications during the trip. Thor was smart enough not to touch Loki, even if he gave Loki a look.

With a click and a flashing blue, they arrived on the center of what the Midgardians call 'Manhattan'.

The Avengers were already there waiting for them, as well as what he assumed to be SHIELD Agents. Only the Agents wore suits, while the so called  _heroes_  all had different types of clothing.

Loki zoomed in on Stark. Even with his usual outfit, that Loki imagined the shirt was a reference to the Midgardian culture, he looked attractive enough. He also wore dark sunglasses, though the sun wasn't shining so bright that day.

"Welcome back to Earth." The director announced out of duty. His face held no emotion.

The mortals bowed slightly to them, though Stark did it slow enough for Loki to catch his arrogant air.

He likely didn't think he needed to bow to them. Stupid mortal.

That reminded him of the last time he saw Stark, when he was about to leave Asgard. That atrocious kiss made his blood boil and he immediately wanted to make him pay for that.

Ah, but what better payback than humiliation?

Loki started walking towards the mortal, momentarily leaving his family's side and disregarding the Agents looking at him with curiosity. Stark raised an eyebrow in question, but as he opened his mouth to speak, Loki took the man's jaw in his hands and planted a kiss.

It wasn't as quick as Stark's first kiss, though it also wasn't deep or even meaningful. A superficial kiss, much like their own marriage would soon be.

Stark obviously didn't kiss back, but his reaction was expected from Loki. The short man stood still, confused, awestruck. Loki was sure that he wasn't disgusted by the kiss, on the contraire, the man had quite  _liked it_  if the way his lips had slightly parted could be of any proof. When Loki let his lips go, he murmured against them, "See you at the wedding,  _darling_." He spit the nickname venomously.

Stark didn't quite blush, but he was too bewildered to reply. Loki displayed a triumphant smirk and returned to his family, appreciating the looks everyone gave him and Stark.

His own reputation was already damaged enough, so what else could these mortals do to him? He would probably get punished by Stark later this night.

But that look on his face was so  _worth it_.

 

*******

 

The son of a bitch had kissed him.

Kissed him. Not just a small peck on the lips, like Tony had given him. He kissed him  _good_.

And that's what Tony hated the most. Loki was a  _good kisser_ , he found out now that their lips had joined for more than half a second. In those few moments that he couldn't react, his own mind betrayed him by quietly asking for more.

More of Loki's surprisingly  _warm_ lips, more of that surprisingly  _sweet_  touch, more of-

No.  _Fuck_ this. He's just been over a terrible break-up. That's it. People tend to feel clingy to others when they go through break-ups. It doesn't have to mean anything.

When he convinced himself of that, he actually realizes the Avengers' reactions. Steve was blushing and facing away from him, Bruce was biting his inner cheek, Clint was sticking his tongue out and pretending to vomit and he thought he saw Natasha sneer at him, but soon her expression became blank.

He didn't see Thor's reaction, but he was sure he wouldn't like it.

Dumb-asses.

"All right, nothing to see here. Let's all get ready for my big day, shall we?" Tony said, turning on his heels and heading for Happy and his parked Audi.

He purposefully ignored anyone else who looks at him funny.

 

*******

 

"How are you feeling?" Bruce asked Tony as he helped him with his tie. Not that Tony needed the help, but he was slowly understanding that this was Bruce's way to show support.

He didn't like touches, but he gave them whenever he thought it was necessary. He was touching Tony quite a bit since they welcomed Loki & Co to Earth. Tony didn't say it, but he was grateful for it.

He was more nervous than he'd let it show.

"So, so. How would you feel in my place?" He replied, checking himself out on the mirror. He was wearing a sharp tuxedo, making his appearance look serious but at the same time accentuating his nice physique.

Not that it was news to anyone, but Tony Stark could be vain sometimes.

"I'd have already turned green if I were in your place." His friend admits, patting his shoulder. "But you don't look so bad."

Good. Nobody needed to know how he was truly feeling.

"Maybe that kiss helped you brighten up." Bruce jokes, trying to hide a tiny smile.

Tony rolled his eyes, punching Bruce's arm half-heartedly. "Stop it."

"Tony! Dr Banner!" Thor booms, unceremoniously entering the room and pulling Tony into a one-armed hug. Tony noticed he had a rectangular box with a golden bow on his other hand instead of  Mjölnir . When he lets go of the embrace, he does the same to Bruce.

"How are you faring?"

"I'm good." Bruce replied. Tony just shrugged.

"What's that?" Tony pointed to the box, earning a big smile from Thor.

"My family's gift to you!" The blond opened the box, taking out a sash from it. "We'd like you to wear this during the wedding."

The sash was red, with golden runes sewn into it. Pretty, and it was even the colors of his suit.

Thor rested the box on the nearest table and approached Tony with the sash. Since it's a gift and it clearly means a lot to Thor, he let the Asgardian put the sash across his chest, even if he thought it was unnecessary.

"There! You look outstanding, my friend." Thor patted his shoulders while wearing a smile. Tony just rolled his eyes, but accepted the compliment.

After that, Thor excused himself and went to check on Loki for the last time. Bruce gave him a small hug and left as well.

It was show time.

 

*******

 

"Oh  _hell_ , no." Tony protested to Fury as soon as he arrived at the saloon that the ceremony would be held in. They had agreed that they couldn't make it happen in a church for obvious reasons, and if they did it in Tony's garden it would be too open.

When he got there, he discovered that  _everyone_  was already there and Fury would be the one to escort Tony inside. He wasn't a bride, why did _he_  have to be the one escorted? And by Fury, of all people?

The bastard was laughing, "Since the arrangement was between me and Odin, that kind of makes me responsible for you, Stark."

"Bullshit. I'm responsible for myself, I'm fucking 45 years old." Tony replied darkly, about to open the doors and get in by himself. Fury stopped him just in time, holding his arm.

"Odin disagrees. And as funny as I think this situation is, I'm not too fond of the idea of walking there arm in arm with you."

Tony tsked, "Isn't Loki the one who's going to be 'mine'? Why do _I_  have to walk down the aisle?"

"Odin says you'll only be 'worthy' of his son after this ceremony." Fury scoffs. "Who am I to argue? I just expect you to know what you need to do and give us-"

Tony rolls his eyes, "Yeah, sure, whatever. After I'm happily wedded, I'll make sure you stay the  _fuck_  away from us."

All his life he never had privacy, and he's kind of grown used to it as the years went by, but every now and then it still annoys him, especially now that he'll have to play family with Loki. Besides, he had  _never_ trusted SHIELD.

If they wanted Tony to set Loki straight, he'd do it his own way.

He opened the doors before Nick can reply and soon everyone stood up to receive him. There weren't many people, just his friends - The Avengers, Rhodey, Happy and their dates - a few SHIELD agents and the Asgardians, Odin holding an ancient book open and Frigga by his side, holding her own hands together in an elegant pose.

Loki stood in the altar along with The All-Father and his mother, turning around to see him. He wore armor this time, similar to the one he wore in Asgard when Tony spent a week there, but it was white and gold instead of his usual black and green.

Despite those not being his colors, he looked stunning, Tony had to admit. He even wore the same sash as Tony's, except his was green.

The walk down the aisle wasn't as slow as he watched it in the movies. Maybe he had rushed his pace a bit, but Fury still caught up with him and acted as if that was intended. He gave everyone a fake smile, but Tony knew that he was keeping his rage inside.

When they reached the altar, the director leaned in enough to whisper, "Don't fuck this up, Stark." and rushed to his seat. Tony mentally flipped him off.

"Welcome all, to the  _hjónaband_  between Midgardian Anthony Stark," Odin made a gesture towards Tony, "And my son, Loki Odinson." He made the same gesture towards Loki.

Tony noticed Loki stiffened at the last name. He knew that the man was adopted, but he didn't know why that had such a negative meaning to him.

He filed that for later.

He dozed off for some moments. Odin explained how he expected Tony to treat Loki and how good they both would do for the other. Then he completely switched to Asgardian and Tony was as lost as ever.

Loki's mother showed up by his side, offering them a tray with two goblets of wine. Loki accepted it, and before Tony could refuse, she had already placed it in his hand.

"Take it, darling. It's part of the ceremony." She whispered to him, returning to Odin's side right after.

Odin instructed Tony and Loki to entwine their arms and drink from each other's goblets.

"With this wine, you both commit to support the other however they may need." Odin explained while they drank. Despite the height difference, Tony did it easily. The hard part was Loki's green eyes boring into his.

Loki was the epitome of calmness, and it annoyed Tony _so much_. It was him who was supposed to be nervous, after all. Whenever he looked Loki's way, the god was already staring at him, as if daring him to…

To what? Stop the ceremony? He'd just piss Odin off and delay the inevitable.

But even when he looked away, Loki didn't, which was  _very_ unsettling.

Odin returned to speaking in Asgardian when Thor appeared by Tony's side, holding a pillow with a dagger resting on it. Tony's eyes became as big as saucers, and he could swear he heard a tiny mocking laughter coming from his right.  _Loki_.

When he looked at him, though, the god was pretending to pay attention at the All-Father. Asshole.

"With this dagger, you both commit to take the other's pain as your own and heal them as necessary." Odin explained, but Tony was already protesting.

"Whoa whoa whoa, I don't think that'll be necessary!" Tony exclaimed, holding his palms up in front of Thor, who was offering him the dagger.

The room became silent as Odin burned Tony with his eye, daring him to say anything else to interrupt the ceremony. Looking behind himself, he saw his friend's worried faces. Even Thor wore a pleading expression, by his side.

Tony sighed deeply. Loki didn't seem phased by this, but then again, he must've known that this part was coming. Maybe they cut their palms in Asgard for just about anything.

He took the dagger first, feeling the weight of it on his hand. He didn't want to cut himself, but the faster he does it the faster the ceremony will be over and he'll be able to go home. They've already started it anyway, might as well finish it with style - even if it'd hurt.

The cut stung a lot, and Tony immediately hissed at the pain. The red was quick to stain the dagger and pool around his palm. He gave it to Loki, who cut his own palm without even worrying to clean it first.

Ew. Was that how it's supposed to be done?

When Loki returned the dagger to Thor, he took Tony's injured hand on his own, flatting their palms up. They stayed with their hands together for a few moments. Tony didn't dare look at Loki this time, so he focused on the feel of it instead. He could feel both their blood gushing from their wounds, but Loki's felt less messy than his. That just raised Tony's suspicions that they cut their hands all the time in The Golden Realm.

Tony just hoped Asgard didn't have any disease transmissible through blood.

Odin spoke something in Asgardian, probably a spell, and Tony felt a strange tickle on his palm. When he removed his hand from Loki's, the cut was closing itself rapidly, the blood dissipating into nothing.

The All-Father kept speaking but Tony couldn't hear him. He looked at his hand, stunned, touching it. It was exactly like before the cut, as if the dagger had never even touched his skin. And all just because Odin spoke a few words.

He almost wanted to cut his hand again so he'd see the process with more attention.  _Almost_.

"With these rings, Tony Stark," The All-Father was in front of him in a second, book resting on the altar. He held another pillow, with the rings on it. Tony thought they'd be more fancy, with colourful jewels and runes, but they're just a golden band each. They do have runes on their insides, though, but Tony couldn't read it. "You commit to  assume  control over Loki, but not to abuse it."

That wasn't just Odin All-Father speaking. It was Odin,  _Loki's_  father.

Tony wasn't thinking of abusing his power, but he wondered what exactly abuse meant to Odin's culture. Was it only the scandalous kind or anything could be it, like asking Loki to run a few tests in the name of science?

Either way, Tony would be careful. He wasn't a jerk and besides, he wasn't too eager to start spending time with Loki.

Tony took one of the rings, unsure if it mattered which one was his. When Odin didn't protest, he easily slid his finger on it. Nothing different - a.k.a magical - happened.

Odin turned the pillow to Loki. He stood still for some moments, staring at the offensive ring until he took it with a sigh. He put it on and immediately tried to disguise a face of discomfort.

The All-Father returned to the altar, making his finishing speech. Tony's ring  glew  bright and he felt the same tingle as before, only this time the ring grew warm. Loki's discomfort also became more apparent.

That was the first time that day that Loki avoided eye contact.

Odin closed the book again. "You may now seal it with a kiss."

So that was it, then.

Tony turned to Loki. They've kissed before, but both times were out of spite just to get at the other's nerves. They even had an audience both times as well. But this time was different, it was official.

Tony gulped unconsciously. Loki clenched his jaw, finally looking down at Tony.

Fuck it. Kissing your husband shouldn't be so difficult.

He leant in and Loki got the message. They didn't really touch, like the last time, but it was quicker this time. Just a small peck on the lips.

As soon as their lips touched, they were gone.

"Congratulations to the new couple." Odin said at last. And in the next second, he was leaving.

Before she could go after him, Frigga bowed down to Tony and Loki. "Congratulations, my dears."

She gave a kiss to each their foreheads and left as well.

And just like that, they were married. The wedding ring on his finger somehow felt heavier when he acknowledged that.

Tony started to mindlessly touch it, twirling it around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaannnddd with that the wedding is done!! YAY...????????????????????  
> Sorry if it sucked or wasn't what you were waiting for.  
> The title is from [Tim Burton's Corpse Bride wedding song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eh6SqDBPbXE), the vows were slightly inspired by [Victor's vows](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9tRIS3cM5w) even though they might not sound similar (I just kept listening/reading his vows over and over until I could think of something on my own) and, lastly, the kiss (the wedding kiss :P) is inspired by Sweeney Todd's kiss on the [By The Sea](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10tee6Eff34) scene (around 2:03).
> 
> AAAANNNNDDDD.... I literally only just realized that this is all Burton OJSAPDHIOGUIASFUD WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED WITH ME????  
> Anyway, that's it. Next chapter this story goes from Teen to Explicit, if you know what I mean :P hopefully it won't take me too long to update again, but I make no more promises.


	9. I Like It Rough

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're reading this for the first time, **ignore this.**
> 
> If you already read chapter 9 and are wondering why I'm posting again: I rewrote the chapter a bit :) More precisely, _that one_ scene. I'd really appreciate if you guys told me on the comments below what you think of it.
> 
> And also of the chapter in general. Because, you know, there's not just sex here lol
> 
> Title comes from Lady Gaga's song :)

"Do you want to stay for the reception?" Tony asked Loki after his parents had left and the 'party' began.

It was a small ceremony and just a few people were invited. Music was playing – though not the kind Tony would choose - and they were dancing. There was plenty of food and a large cake.

Not like their wedding was anything like your common everyday wedding, but still. Under different circumstances Tony would want to enjoy the party.

Loki raised his eyebrow at him, "Bored already, are you?"

Tony shrugged. "Thought you might be. Thought you'd want to go home to sulk about the situation."

That earned him a glare. "Even if I did, I wouldn't be given privacy would I, Stark?"

Tony chuckled, watching as Natasha led a shy Steve onto the dance floor. "Doesn't that defeat the purposes of being recently married?"

The song was too energetic for a slow dance, so Natasha held Steve's hands and swayed them around contently. Steve was as bright as a tomato, though Tony could see he was trying to hide his smile.

"I believe it would, had we any feelings for each other." Was Loki's response.

Tony hummed. They stood against a wall for a few moments, watching as the party took place before them, not joining but not really leaving either.

"You didn't answer my question." Tony finally said.

"Neither did you answer mine."

" _Seriously_ , Loki." Tony sighed, "Just tell me if you want to leave."

Loki turned to face him. " _Yes_. But... a slice of cake would be nice first."

Tony rolled his eyes. "It wouldn't hurt you to ask." And left to cut the cake.

Tony could understand why Loki wasn't talkative. This whole marriage thing was weird already without the control issue, and it wasn't like Tony would mistreat him. Loki's actions needed a punishment, but no one knew it was going to be like this.

Well, he didn't have much else to lose anyway – if he had anything at all. To be honest, neither did Tony.

The cake was quite large, for a small ceremony. It had fancy frosting, mostly gold and red to resemble his suit. It didn't have a color to resemble Loki, but at least the cake toppings were two men. Tony noticed only one of them wore a tuxedo, the other wore a fancy dark green suit and  _helmet_.

He snorted.

Tony looked around for a knife – it was supposed to sit next to the cake for easy access – when Clint showed up out of nowhere.

"Watcha doing?"

Tony jumped, " _Jesus_ , Barton. No need to be sneaky." he exclaimed, whirling around to face the archer.

"Wasn't being sneaky, you just didn't hear me." Clint shrugged, "Are you trying to cut the cake before it's time?"

"Do I really need to _wait_  to cut a piece of cake at my own wedding?" Tony retorted. "As you know, I don't really do waiting."

"Too bad for you. Rogers insisted that I keep an eye on you so you wouldn't try to bypass the rules."

" _Rules_?" Tony pulled a face.

Clint shrugged again. "His words, not mine."

Tony squinted his eyes. Barton raised an eyebrow. Tony crossed his arms and Barton did the same.

Either Steve didn't know them better or he didn't think this through.

"What's your price?" Tony asked, even though he pretty much already knew.

Barton bit his lip, trying not to laugh. Looking around to see if Steve – or, God forbid, Natasha – was looking in their direction. He then leaned close to whisper to Tony, "Five pieces of cake."

Tony pushed Barton as if he had electrocuted him. " _Five_?!" He stage-whispered loudly.

"Take it or leave it." He replied with a toothy grin.

Tony sighed. It wasn't like Clint couldn't eat more slices later, he just wanted to eat it before everyone else. And apparently,  _more_  than everyone else. The cake was big enough for all of them to eat at least 3 slices each and bring more home and  _still_ have enough left, but six slices of the cake cut before the right time would be very noticeable.

Well. That was Clint's problem, not Tony's.

"Fine. Just do it already."

The archer smirked, taking a knife from his pocket and sneakingly cutting slices from the cake. Tony looked around, in case someone caught them doing it, but all others were busy talking or dancing to pay attention on them.

Tony noticed Fury had already left, the other Agents gone with him. He tutted, and he didn't even have the good graces to say goodbye. Not that he particularly minded the Director's presence, but he at least expected a curt farewell.

Guess he really was there just for the wedding.

"Here you go," Clint called him back, giving him a  _tiny_  piece of the cake. "Now scram before Steve catches both of us."

Tony wanted to facepalm. "Are you fucking shitting me? Look at the size of this thing."

Tony has never, in his entire life, eaten small pieces of cake. His father never approved of his copious amounts of food on his plate, but he'd always liked to eat well. Howard wanted him to be reasonable with his eating – "Tony, you're only supposed to eat  _one slice_  at a time." – but his mother secretly gave him bigger slices when Howard wasn't looking.

The piece of cake wasn't exactly for him, but he felt offended on Loki's behalf. It was  _his_  wedding cake, for fuck's sake, if he wanted to eat the whole cake by himself he might as well could.

Clint rolled his eyes. "My slices are small too, smartass. If they're any bigger someone will immediately find out." He leaned in, "Besides, you won't want to look fat on your wedding night. Unless Loki is into that."

Tony pinched Clint's lips between his fingers, "Shut up." He said half-heartedly.

He let his friend's lips go, "Thanks, bird brain."

"Have fun with your psycho husband." Clint replied before Tony could be out of hearing range.

Shaking his head, Tony returned to the wall Loki was  _supposed_  to be waiting by, but when he got there he found no one. Damn it.

It was foolish of him to think Loki would stay still, but he honestly didn't think he'd leave. Especially since he couldn't know where he was. Tony started to get annoyed.

Who the fuck asks you for cake and then runs away? Fucking Loki.

Upon looking around the room, he found a dark figure sitting by the bar, drinking. Tony immediately goes after him.

"It'd be nice if you told me where you're going." Was Tony's greeting. Loki didn't even look up at him, just took another sip of his drink.

"You seem to have a lot of wrong ideas about me, Stark."

"Not you, marriage. The whole 'me being responsible over you' shtick." He answered in a somewhat angry tone.

Loki just contemplated the drink. "You never did give me that drink." He whispered in a thoughtful voice.

Tony's anger dissipated a little. He didn't know if Loki's change of subject was on purpose, but he let it slide. Sitting on a chair next to Loki's, he pushed the piece of cake towards the god. "You didn't accept it. Anyway, here's your cake."

Loki mindlessly took the fork, playing with the food. "I did later. When–"

"When the Hulk beat your ass up, yeah, I remember. But then, we didn't have much time alone."

The god took a forkful of cake, but didn't put it on his mouth. He still refused to look at Tony. "I suppose it doesn't matter now, does it?"

Tony licked his lips. He  _really_  shouldn't feel sorry for Loki. He really, really shouldn't.

"If you still want it, I could provide it."

Loki finally brought the fork to his mouth, tasting the sugar on his tongue. He took a drink in his hand – absinthe, Tony realized – and gestured towards Tony. "I can take care of myself, as you can see."

Maybe it was supposed to be a funny remark, but Loki's tone was so  _dry_ that Tony couldn't help but be offended. "Hey, I was trying to be nice, reindeer games."

Loki scoffed, before taking another bite of the cake. "And look where it has led you."

Tony opened his mouth to retort, but… the bastard was  _right_. Taking one for the team wasn't a walk in the park. In that moment Tony realized Loki wasn't going to make it easy either.

Suddenly, his anger made a quick comeback.

"Finish your damn cake, and then we're going home." He gritted between his teeth, and Loki rushed to eat his – again, tiny – piece of cake. Loki ate the rest of the cake in a bite, looking rather annoyed at Tony.

And then Tony remembered.

Oh, right. He can order Loki around, now.

That was simultaneously funny and still weird.

"Let's go, then." Tony commanded, standing up from the bar and going towards his friends' to tell them he'd be leaving. Loki trailed behind him, more rigid than ever.

"Well, I guess this was fun," Tony announced upon arriving at their table and putting an arm around Bruce and the other around Romanoff, "But Loki and I gotta bail. You know, for our honeymoon and all that."

Rogers pulled a surprised face. "You didn't even cut the cake yet!"

So he hadn't found out about the cake yet. Good. Clint was subconsciously licking his lips, probably trying to wipe away any evidence of his crime.

"Or had your first dance as a married couple." Bruce supplied.

"Or thrown the bouquet at us." Natasha added, smirking. She looked like she had just retouched her lipstick. Tony wondered if Clint gave her a piece of the stolen cake as well.

"You know that wouldn't happen anyway." He said to Natasha, who gave him a fake pout. "All of these traditions are from  _traditional_  weddings. Our wedding was a bit different." He said, pointing to his previously injured hand.

"Oh, friend Stark, but I  _insist_ you should do this Midgardian tradition!" Thor told them as he stood from his seat. He was at their side in a moment, embracing both Tony and Loki. "I'd hate for you to bring dishonour on yourself and your culture just because you're in a hurry to enjoy your time alone with my brother!"

Loki was the first to react, digging his nails into Thor's arm and pushing him away. He still kept quiet, but his message to Thor was crystal clear.

Tony cleared his throat. "It's not a matter of bringing dishonor to anyone, Thor. Don't worry."

Happy and Rhodey were sniggering at the near table, so Tony changing his attention to them. "So, we're leaving. Talk to you guys soon?"

That was when he realized that only Rhodey was laughing at them. Happy was too busy texting someone.

"Sure." Rhodey replied, giving Tony a hug. "Congratulations, Tony. Be careful."

"Sure thing." He said as he patted Rhodey's back. "Hey Happy, you hear me? We're leaving."

"Huh?" Happy said, still lost in his reverie, finally looking up at Tony. "Oh! Right! I'll go start the car." He said in a rush, running towards the exit so he could get to the limousine before Tony and Loki.

 

* * *

 

Happy drove them to the closest airport. They kept silent for the duration of the trip, each one looking through the windows before they finally arrived.

His private jet was already there waiting for him, and thankfully there was no media or fans waiting there for him. He'd later make a public statement about Loki. After all, he couldn't keep him in the dark from the media for too long. But at least he could stall that a bit.

He took a mental note to give the workers of that airport a big tip for their discretion.

The pilot greeted them on their way up before entering his cabin. Tony offered a hand to Loki to climb the stairs to his jet, but the god was already doing so without so much as a glance his way.

Upon getting in himself and closing the door behind him, Tony sat on the comfortable large seat across from Loki's. He was ready to make small talk before Loki held his hand up.

"I get it. I either play according to your rules or you turn me into your personal puppet." Loki sighed, resting his head back onto the luxurious seat and closing his eyes. He kept his eyes closed for a fraction of a second, before opening them again and giving Tony a menacing look. "But you must understand that  _playing along_  isn't exactly on my nature."

Tony scoffed. "Good. Neither is it in mine."

Loki slowly got up and sat next to Tony, leaning closer to him. "Tell me, Stark… you didn't like this arrangement either, did you?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Well… yes." Tony finally answered Loki. "Champagne?" He offered.

Loki smirked at him and nodded. Tony got up and opened the mini fridge by his right side, taking out the bottle and two tall glasses next to it. He poured them both a generous amount of champagne and gave one glass to Loki.

Their fingers touched for a mere second, but the charge between their bodies was noticeable. Tony hummed. Maybe that was Loki's magic trying to make an appearance.

"What did you have to leave behind for me, Tony Stark?" Loki asked him in a – he had to admit – seductive voice.

Tony knew Loki was up to something, but he decided to roll along for now. "Not much. Just, you know, a girlfriend. My own freedom. The usual."

Loki's eyes shone at that. He took a sip of the champagne before saying, "What if I told you…" He leaned even closer, "I could give it all back to you?"

Ah. He was most likely using his silver tongue on Tony.

"And how exactly would you do that, hubby?" Tony retorted in an uninterested tone, taking a sip of his champagne.

Loki smiled devilishly at him, "By taking off our rings, of course."

Tony laughed. "Of course." He rested his glass on a the mini-bar in front of them, putting a finger on his ring and attempting to remove it. "Why didn't I–"

But the ring wouldn't come off. No matter how hard Tony tried, it just  _wouldn't_  come off.

He clicked his tongue. He should've known.

Loki rolled his eyes, taking another sip from his glass. "It is protected against sheer force, Stark. If it could be taken off so easily, do you think I wouldn't have done so already?"

"So why did you imply that–"

Loki put his own glass aside, getting so close to Tony that their knees were touching. "There is another way of taking off the rings. But, you must cooperate."

Tony looked him dead in the eye. He showed Loki his hand and said "Take it off, then. With your magic."

Loki sighed exasperatedly, taking Tony's hand in his own and lowering them. "I wish I could fight the All-Father's magic with my own, but this isn't _just_  his magic. These rings are ancient, all Odin did was enhance their magical powers with his own."

Tony blinked in confusion. "You can upgrade magic?"

Loki seemed to weigh his words before nodding. "Odin is unfortunately far more powerful than I am, and these rings are even more powerful."

Tony noticed their hands were still being held. "So what's your plan?"

The god squeezed his hand. "Do you trust me?"

Tony couldn't help the loud laughter that came out of him. "Of  _fucking_  course not, Aladdin. What made you think even for a  _second_ , that I did?"

Loki frowned, but tried to mask his annoyance. "Stark, I'm going to need you to trust me on this. Just this once."

"Not a chance, God of Lies."

"Stark,  _please_ –"

"What is it?" Tony asked then, letting go of his hand. His own nerves were starting to go all over the place. "What is your plan? Why does it even need trust?"

Tony wasn't so desperate to get back to his old life, but maybe it'd be nice to be able to. But not if there was a price to pay.

"Well…" Loki started, swallowing dryly, "We'd have to… cut your finger off."

"Are you  _fucking_  insane?" Tony yelled, straightening his posture at the absurdity of getting his finger cut off. "Why the fuck–"

"I'll grow it back, Stark." Loki quickly reassured him, speaking in a calm tone. "That's why you'll need to trust me, just this once. I'll give your finger a clean cut–"

"Well, why the fuck don't you cut your own finger off instead?" Tony said accusingly, pointing to Loki's ring finger. "Shouldn't that do the trick?"

Loki sighed again, "That would only bring me pain for a few seconds before the magic worked itself around my finger again, stitching it back in place. I need to cut  _your_  finger because you have become the source of my magic."

Loki sighed in exasperation at the incredulous look on Tony's face.

"That's how you can command me to do things. My magic isn't mine anymore, it is yours. Since mortals aren't prone to being magic users, these rings keep it at bay so a disaster doesn't happen–"

"And you want to cut my ring finger off? Fuck no–"

"Will you let me finish?" Loki spat angrily. Tony gestured him to continue.

"And it also works as a… reaction, so to speak. It is yours but by giving me the permission to use it, it is mine again for a temporary limit of time."

"And if you cut it?"

"The magic 'oozes' out and it's mine to steal back, if you will. It should give me enough time to get rid of my own ring and grow you back your finger. The wedding already happened, so lawfully speaking I'd still be under your jurisdiction. You could just go back to your lady and I'd vanish from Midgard." Loki gave him a smile. "Our paths would never cross again. The end."

Tony thought about it for a moment. That _could_  work. He could just tell Fury and the others that the rings weren't as powerful as they thought they were and Loki broke free. Maybe it'd be a slow process, to make them believe in him and even gain Pepper back, but Tony could do it.

But…

"What if it doesn't work? What if I just end up with a cut finger?"

"I can grow it back, provided that you ask me to do so." Loki answered coolly. He arched his eyebrows suggestively, completely confident in his planl.

Tony took his glass of champagne again and sipped it thoughtfully. Loki quickly did the same, his eyes never leaving Tony's.

After Tony finished his champagne he licked his lips, turned again to Loki and simply said: "No."

Loki gripped his champagne glass with deadly force, shattering it and spilling the rest of the champagne all over his hand and clothes. " _No_?" Loki demanded.

"Yep. No." Tony replied in a fake playful tone, flashing a smile to Loki. "I don't trust you. Even if what you're telling me is true, I don't think you'd make my finger grow back. And you know, as a superhero, businessman, and an  _overall_  public figure, I kind of need to keep all of my fingers intact."

Tony heard the tell tale sound of the jet landing and moved to the exit before Loki could get his hands on him. It didn't take long before the door opened and Tony climbed down the ladder, nodding to the staff in thanks.

Loki was right behind him, looking murderous as they walked to the car. "Stark–"

"Get in, we'll talk when we get home."

Loki tried to touch him, but Tony's tone got harder. " _Don't_  touch me. We'll talk at my house. Until then, you keep your hands to yourself and don't say a word."

If Tony was going to be honest, he was pretty scared of Loki hurting him just because he said no. So yeah, he'd use this little advantage over Loki if he needed to.

He could let Loki talk, but what would be the use? He'd spit venomous curses at him anyway. Plus, he did say they'd talk when they'd get to his malibu house. It wasn't going to be a long ride.

Loki got inside the car gracefully, almost as if there wasn't magic pulling him into it, but his expression told Tony  _exactly_  how much Loki loved what he was doing.

This car ride was even more tense than the first.

 

* * *

 

"Okay," Stark said once they were in his house, in the living room. The magic keeping Loki's mouth shut and his hands tied by his sides disappeared. "I know you're mad, but–"

Loki grabbed Stark by his collar, pushing him into the nearest wall. "Do you really want to keep up with this?" He hissed.

Stark was dazed for half a second from the impact, but then he asked, "Excuse me?"

"This marriage drama." Loki spoke forcefully, raising the mortal's collar a little higher so it would hurt. "Do you really value your  _finger_  more than freedom?"

"You know, I'd be more willing to trust you to grow it back if you didn't freak me out like this." Stark hissed in pain, his hands trying to move Loki's away. "Then again, you  _are_  the God of Mischief."

"I'm also your  _husband_  if we don't take these  _things_  off!" Loki yelled in frustration, finally releasing Stark from his grip.

The mortal coughed a few times to gain back his breath, when they heard a voice.

"Sir, will you be needing medical assistance? Or perhaps a muzzle to put on Mr Loki?"

Loki grit his teeth, looking up at the ceiling, but before he could reply, Stark did so first.

"I'm  _fine_ , Jarv. I can take care of him by myself."

Mildly recovered, Stark then punched him in the jaw but all it did was startle Loki and hurt his fragile hand in the process.

" **Fuck** ," Stark cursed loudly, clutching at his injured hand, "What the hell are you made of? Fucking  _steel_?!"

Loki chuckled darkly, grabbing Stark by his neck and pushing him into the wall again, trapping him there. "You might have power over me, Stark, but I'm still stronger than you."

He dug his nails into Stark's paper-like skin, roughly enough to draw blood and leave dark bruises. He  _wanted_  to hurt him, wanted to show him that even without his magic he could do damage.

"Loki, I'm warning you…" Stark croaked, precious breath fleeing his body.

He tried to take another breath, his hands desperately attempting to push Loki away from him.

Loki loved this, the sight before him, the feel of his independence and pride coming back to him. However, he knew that Stark was just a mortal, and it wasn't in his immediate plans to kill him.

_At least not yet_ , Loki thought, and let out an internal chuckle.

He  _was_  just about to let him go and announce that he was just jesting with him when the mortal shook with anger, baring his teeth. "Fine. You give me no choice, then,  _hubby_."

At the nickname, Loki blinked. It was the second time he was called that, but the first time Stark had used it just to mock him. This time, it sounded more like a  _threat_.

"Let.  _Go._  Of me." Stark spat.

Loki felt an electric charge run through him, starting at his hands. He let go of Stark, alarmed, but as soon as they stopped touching the pain was over.

He was about to start another argument and tell Stark that he wasn't going to hurt him any longer than what his frail body could take, when the mortal then said "Now get out of my sight. Go–" His voice failed him, so he tried again. "Go upstairs, to the bedroom."

While the mortal brushed his throat – likely still feeling the ghost of Loki's hand squeezing him – Loki's still body obeyed, calmly striding towards the spiral stairs on the other side of the room and climbing them as if he intended on doing it all along.

Stark was right behind him, but he kept himself quiet, probably thinking. Loki didn't say a word as they made their way to the brunet's room.

Once inside, Stark shut the door. Loki could sense the smaller man's rage building up, and he attempted to apologize – if only so the punishment that he was about to get could be alleviated a little.

"Stark–"

"Shut up." Stark snapped, "I don't want to hear what you have to say, okay?"

Loki's tongue failed him and he frowned, glaring at him. He would laugh at the irony, had the circumstances been any different. Holding a hand up in surrender, putting on a mask of calmness, he reaches to put a hand over Stark's arm but it was too late. The bruises that he had given him were almost shadowed in the dim light and Stark took a step away from him.

" _Don't_ touch me." Stark looked away, sighing heavily. Loki's hands immediately fell to his sides, where they kept still as if they were made of stone.

Stark ran his hand through his hair, other hand on his hip as he paced. Loki watched him, sitting on the bed as he saw the man was deep in his thoughts and wasn't about to come back to reality any time soon.

"Do we even  _have_ to consummate this thing?" Stark asked as he turned around to face him, feeling at his bruised throat unconsciously.

Loki raised an eyebrow, opening his arms as he replied, "Unless Midgard is less diverse than I last remember, it  _is_  a tradition here too."

The mortal rolled his eyes. "A ' _yes'_  would have been enough."

Loki simply shrugged at that.

They stared at each other for seconds, neither one making a move to initiate anything, until Stark shook his head.

"You won't start anything, will you?"

Loki made a face.

"Fine. Then, kneel."

_**What?** _

Loki's knees hit the floor before he could even register the fact, and he stared up at Stark when the man laughed, approaching him. Loki viciously glared at him, before the man replied.

"Okay, you can talk."

Loki wasted no time. As soon as his tongue came back to life, he said, " _Very_ funny, Stark. I'm adoring your sense of humour so far."

_Of course_  the mortal would mock him for how he behaved before the invasion. He wouldn't understand what he went through, or why he acted the way he did. If anything, he'd most likely think Loki deserved everything that happened, should he ever find out about the truth.

He only allowed himself to swallow dryly at the thought, and mentally waved away the bad memory. At least for the time being.

"Aw,  _honey_." Stark also took refuge in sarcasm, quickly unbuckling his pants. "Don't you remember? You said that in Stuttgart. That's where we first met."

The man slid his pants off, kicking them to the side and then worked on taking off the top of his suit.

"How romantic." Loki replied dryly. "I certainly didn't know this side of you,  _darling_."

"You bring out the best in me,  _hon_. And what can I say? I remember people who give me a strong first impression." He successfully threw away the last piece of clothing, standing bare in front of Loki.

Loki had to admit, Tony Stark had a  _wonderful_  body. Though he wasn't as built as the men of Asgard, he also didn't fall much behind, for a Midgardian. Loki took the sight before him, the well toned muscles, the strong arms, the defined abs.

The semi-erect cock, ready to jump to life.

Even Stark's peculiar circle of light on his chest, so mysterious and interesting, brought out a certain beauty to itself, despite the scars around it.

"Like what you see, babe?" He teased, a hand coming down to stroke himself, all modesty gone between them.

Loki squinted his eyes mockingly, "Oh dear, I can hardly see anything worth looking at."

Stark frowned momentarily. "Open your mouth, jackass."

Loki's eyes betrayed his smirk as his mouth opened wide and Stark slid his cock inside. He didn't mind. Stark's ego had already been jabbed enough. Though surely, Loki could keep going as soon as his mouth was free again. He was rather enjoying himself, watching Stark's expression change with each insult.

The god rested his hands on Stark's hips as he slowly worked on his shaft with his tongue. The man elicited a tiny moan, tangling his hand into Loki's hair as he encouraged Loki further.

Loki took him deeper into his throat, bobbing his head while he fondled Stark's testicles with his hand. He was still mildly irritated at the kneeling, but this? This gave him  _control_.

As much as receiving oral sex was splendid – and Loki would make sure that he'd get it soon –  _giving it_ made the person who gives it in charge of the pleasure.

He swallowed Stark's cock with a hunger, but it was more than anything a hunger for  _power and control_. The mortal groaned a little louder now, as Loki sucked him fiercely, his tongue licking the slit.

" _God_ ," Stark gasped, his grip on Loki's hair tighter, "You're going to make me come too soon, Loki."

Loki let go of the cock, putting a hand in front of his mouth in mock surprise. "Oh my. Perhaps I should  _stop_ , or else my dear husband won't be able to last the rest of the night with his limited mortal physiology."

There was a pause between them before Stark grabbed him by the crook of the neck, slamming him face-first onto the wall. Alright, so he  _could_  be stronger if he put his mind to it.

"You're really an ass, did you know that?" He hissed in his ear, the mortal's hands coming to caress Loki's behind, "As well as a tease."

He was still fully clothed, but he could feel Stark's erection pushing against his bottom. His own erection begged for release from his confinement, his usually cool skin now hot from arousal, already sweating.

"You are far crueler, Stark. Here I was, giving you the best oral sex you could have possibly ever had, and not only don't you  _thank_  me but you also insist on keeping me clothed."

"Oh, my apologies, Your  _Highness_." The short man retorted, giving Loki's ass a slap, which startled him. "Take off your clothes. Magically, or by the traditional way. You choose."

"How thoughtful of you, giving me a choice." Loki spat in reply. With a shimmer, his clothes were gone, leaving him exposed.

He was about to leave the wall as well, when–

"Oh, no, don't move." Stark almost cooed, giving his ass a nice squeeze. "You're exactly where I want you to be."

He suddenly felt glued to the wall, like a fly trapped in a spider's comparison only made his irritation grow all the more.  _He_  used to be like a spider.  _He_  lured gullible flies onto  _his own_  trap. He should have kept his mouth shut, it could be  _him_  doing this all instead.

Stark's hands were moving all over his body, groping everywhere, his mouth biting on Loki's neck with perhaps the same hunger Loki felt before.

Stark wrapped his fingers around Loki's cock and started to pump, the other hand resting on his hips. The man's erection nudged his behind, and all Loki could do was keep his mouth shut.

Loving it as much as he was, he simply  _couldn't_  let it show. Like him, Stark was a proud man. One moan and Loki's mocking façade would be ruined.

Stark squeezed a little harder, and Loki accidentally let out a moan. The smaller man chuckled in delight.

"You're loving this, Loki. Don't deny it."

Instead, Loki replied with a "Get  _on_  with it, you stupid mortal."

Stark chuckled again, this time right in his ear. "Patience is a virtue."

"Do you  _really_  think I'm virtuous?" He remarked, giving Stark a pointed look from over his shoulder.

Stark tilted his head to the side, smirking. "Huh. Good point." His face came closer to Loki's, stealing a small kiss that caught him by surprise.

"I guess neither am I." He then said with a playful tone, before leaving Loki to the cold wall.

He did  _not_  miss Stark's warmth. Or his small and yet built frame pressing against Loki's back. Or his mouth on Loki's neck.

_Any_  of the above. He didn't miss it. Not at all.

...

Truth be told, it has been  _so long_  since Loki had had the delight to feel another's hands on him, another's mouth on him, another's warmth radiating over him. He knew fully well who was doing this to him, and why he shouldn't be enjoying a  _mortal's_  touch, which was why he was determined not to let Stark know anything.

He heard the mortal fumble with his own belongings before then returning with a bottle in hand. He grinned at Loki when he saw the look on his face.

"Did ya miss me, honey?" He asked in a childish tone, coming back to his rightful place behind Loki, leaving small kisses on his shoulder.

Loki rolled his eyes. "Enough with the sweetness, my dear husband, or else I might actually lose interest."

He heard no reply from the man, who was too busy still kissing Loki's neck, a hand fondling Loki's balls momentarily. Then, he heard a pop, and Stark's hand left him. Before he could think of complaining, he heard the sound of the lubricant being squirted out of the bottle and onto Stark's hand.

"Open your legs wider." The mortal instructed and Loki felt his legs slide to each side, his heavy balls hanging in the middle.

He heard a small thud to the side indicating that Stark had thrown the bottle away, and soon after he felt a hand back on his cock while the other caressed his asshole. Teeth started to bite at his neck again, hungrier than the last time.

The man's constant hot breath on his ear was incredibly distracting. As well as the way his skilled hand squeezed Loki's cock and his fingers circled his entrance, finally entering one of them ever so slowly.

Loki moaned accidentally, which earned him a second finger in his hole and an enthusiastic suckle on his neck.

"We're not even having some real fun yet, but glad to see you're already loving it."

Stark teased as he removed a hand from Loki's cock and concentrated on scissoring his hole.

"Perhaps if you stopped teasing and just got it over with, we'd both be having 'real fun'."

"You sure, sweet cheeks? I might hurt you."

Loki let out a bark of a laughter at the man's ignorance. "I'm a  _god_ –"

"Oh no, not the  _puny mortal_ speech." Stark removed his fingers, spread Loki's cheeks apart and positioned his cock against Loki's entrance. "I'm done with role-playing." He wasted no time to thrusting in, and with a long groan he was fully inside him.

Loki bit the inside of his cheek and closed his eyes. Stark was too quick with the preparation, so it did hurt Loki a bit. But as he'd thought before anyway, he'd always liked it rough and he could handle it. He couldn't even deny that a part of him was loving it, but the reminder that it was  _Stark_  only made him want to rip the mortal's dick off.

With his hands on Loki's hips, Stark started to thrust in and out slowly, with no real rush. If Loki didn't know any better, he'd say that the man was savoring it.

The room was filled with groans, all of them Stark's since Loki tried to keep his mouth shut at all times.

_Don't let him know you're liking it. Do not give him–_

"Tilt your hips back this way for me, please." The mortal asked –  _asked,_ this time – and Loki did so. The usual strings that forced him to do what Stark asked were barely there, more of a  _suggestion_  than an actual obligation.

The new angle was  _so much_   _better_ , allowing Stark to fuck him deeper. Loki's breath quickened, while Stark's ragged breath was already failing him.

"Moan for me, Loki." Stark ordered breathlessly, leaving sloppy kisses around Loki's shoulder blades and running them to his neck, a hand leaving his hips to fondle his balls. " _Moan_."

Loki gasped, a loud moan escaping his throat without permission. Stark was getting faster too, his thrusts relentless, each one eliciting a moan from Loki.

"I could get used to this." The mortal said after a particular thrust. "Couldn't you?"

"Shut  _up_." Loki urged the stupid mortal, biting his own lips hard enough to draw blood.

His legs started to shake, widening all the more he wanted to feel Stark inside him. Behind him, the mortal's hand on his hip was strong, holding him in place as if at any moment he expected Loki to push him back and take back some control. His other hand rubbed him deliciously, while his cock drove him even further against the wall.

He had to admit, Stark wasn't so bad... when he was like this.

With a few last forceful thrusts – that managed to take the breath away from Loki – Stark was coming. He shuddered, his grip on Loki's cock tightening more. While trying to recover his breath he pumped the cock in his hand, squeezing the head between his fingers.

"Come on, Loki." He breathed, giving Loki one last kiss on the shoulder, "Come on. "

Loki came intensely, painting Stark's hands and walls white with semen. When he came back from his high, he realized that he had successfully dug his fingernails onto the wall. He removed them to look at the dents.

As deep as they were, he decided that he could've done worse to the wall. Fortunately, Stark didn't even seem to notice it as he breathed against Loki, still too close to him.

"Alright," The man breathed. "You can – move now."

Loki stayed on the wall for some moments, recovering himself.

"There, there. That wasn't so bad, was it?" Stark said as he patted Loki's ass.

Loki instantly turned around at that and pushed Stark, not too hard but enough to let him fall over onto the edge of his large bed.

The sex had been  _very_  good, but he was still annoyed at the man. Before he could do or say anything else, though, the mortal smirked. Loki was confused for a second, until Stark said:

"Just go to sleep, Loki. We can continue this tomorrow, if you want."

And just like that, Loki met the darkness.  _Damn him_.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to Ally, for beta'ing the first half of the fic, and Britta, for beta'ing the rest <3  
> And to you, who's reading this fic.


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